In TALON's Grasp
by T.R. Fanatic
Summary: Kaze, a brand new pilot, joins a Raven team in hopes of seeking closure. Chapter 6 updated! COMPLETED! Bonus chapter at the end! R&R please!
1. Test

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the main character (and the surveyor in this chapter). Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

_AN: Paragraphs that are italicized (except this one) is what the main character is thinking._

As for the timeline... I'd say around the time Master of Arena began, but Chrome and Murakumo are still waging war... XP All right, I'll get on with it!

Chapter 1: Test

_I was told, a few days ago, that the test I had to take to become a Raven consisted of a battle, and that was it..._

_...So, why am I sitting in this small quiet room with a surveyor staring at me? (sigh) I'm either being interviewed or interrogated..._

"Name, please." the surveyor said with his bored expression and voice.

_Name? Hell, I can't give away my real name! Someone will know..._

"...Kaze." I said, finding the first fake name that came to the top of my head.

_Good one, Kaze... (snicker)_

"Kaze, hm?" the surveyor asked. "Your age?"

"Nineteen." I replied without hesitation, holding my balance on the uneven chair.

"Hometown?"

"Isaac City."

_Okay, so age and hometown are true. I can give some truthful things away..._

"Have you trained in a AC before?" the surveyor asked.

"If you count an AC simulator, then, yes." I replied with a smile. The bright light above both of us was starting to blind me.

_That's half true! I did use an AC simulator through most of my training, but a real AC was the first, and the best training I ever had. I would do it again, if I had won and had _he _not run off..._

"And how many hours did you train for?"

"Forty hours."

_One hour in the AC. Thirty-nine in the simulator._

"Alright." the surveyor said, jotting something down on his clipboard. "I have all the information I need. You can head to the arena now."

"Thank you." I said getting up from the chair and headed to the door.

_Whoo! That part's over now! Breathe your sigh of relief and... damn._

"Which way was it to the arena again?" I asked the surveyor.

The surveyor, not looking up from reading the contents on the clipboard, pointed to my left (his right). "Down that hall." he said. "You can't miss it."

"...Okay." I closed the door and walked down the hallway where I saw the sign pointing to the arena and garage.

_Kaze, you idiot! You should've seen that sign!_

**(Part 2)**

I stood in front of the green lightweight bi-pedal AC that I was piloting for the test... and wanted to cry.

"The simulation model, again?" I muttered. "Dammit!"

"Attention." The voice of the intercom announced. "The test will begin shortly."

_All right, no time for crying! Time to show these guys what I'm made of!_

Without wasting any time, I hopped into the ugly AC's cockpit and turned the engine, the monitors, and everything in between, on.

"AP's full..." I said, making a mental checklist. "Energy's at full power. Let's see what under weapons." I looked to the small screen that show what the AC held for weapons. In this case: a rifle in its right hand; a one-lock missile launcher, carried on the left side of its back; and (the usual...) a laser blade hidden above its left hand.

_Crap, it the simulation AC all over again! From the design, down to the weapons... Can I get a little more variety here?_

"Well, that's everything... wait!" I quickly grabbed the five-point harness behind the chair and strapped myself in.

_That's right! Wear a seat belt, and you'll always stay safe!_

"The test will now begin." the person over the intercom announced. "Please step onto the launch pad."

Stepping down on the left pedal (the pedal that makes the AC walk, glide or roll, depending on which leg model the pilot's using), I sauntered over to the launch pad with ease. ...Until, the AC's feet were locked into the catapult.

_This is new..._

Without warning, the AC was being shoved, at a high speed, along the track, towards the arena's opening doors. Thrown into the small state of shock, I began to push down on the right pedal (the pedal that makes the AC jump and/or use the boosters).

_Dumb move, Kaze... Snap outta it!_

I blinked and realized that I was going to drive my AC into the wall on the other side of the arena. I brought the AC's feet out in front of me, pushed off of the wall and did a mid-air backflip, landing back where I should have started.

_Give me a ten! Give me a ten! That's gold metal worthy, right there!_

As soon as I landed, I heard the AC's computer say in it's monotone voice: "System engaged."

_I'm ready!_

In front of me were two MT's of the same type: a mid-range flying model that looked like overgrown chicks.

I stormed towards the one on the left, firing a few rounds with the rifle. It didn't faze the MT much, but I knew I did some damage at least.

With a few inches between us, I brought out the laser blade in its light red glow.

_Damn, not the weak blade!_

Just as I attacked, the MT jumped and rammed the upper half of my AC.

And for that split second, I saw it. The one that drove me into piloting in the first place: the red AC with the 9 symbol on its arm.

_You... You'll pay for what you did to me!_

As anger coursed through my veins, I brought out the laser blade and sliced the MT down the middle of its body.

_It's not the same..._

The first MT blew into bits of shrapnel as soon as it hit the ground. But I wasn't worried about it. My sights were on the second MT.

From a distance, this time, I fired recklessly at the second target, hoping it would give in soon.

The MT made a few long strides with its reverse-jointed legs and dodged the last few rounds before jumping into the air.

_You won't escape from me!_

I quickly switched over to missile launcher and automatically locked on to the target. I fired immediately after I saw the "1" next to the MT.

The tiny missile flew in a arch-like maneuver before exploding on impact and destroying the MT's backpack.

Without a chance to fly, the MT fell back to earth.

And then, I saw him again. The red AC, almost taunting me.

_It won't be like last time, I swear!_

I drew the laser blade once more and charged once more, and flew past... leaving another destroyed MT in my wake.

_It won't happen again..._

"The test is over, Kaze." someone over my radio announced. "Congratulations, Raven."

I didn't say anything in return. A silent stream of tears was my only response.

_It will not happen again..._

**To be continued...**


	2. Moving Out

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the main character: Kaze (and the truck driver in this chapter). Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 2: Moving Out

_...Building ...building ...buil- no, wait, fake tree..._

And for the past half hour, that was me, bored and exhausted while going to my new home: a Raven base outside of Isaac City. Not walking, mind you. The Ravens' Nest offered a ride in one of their cargo trucks (and they brought along the AC I piloted for the test... crap).

_Well, at least I'll be close to home..._

"So," the truck driver began, attempting to make conversation. "finally a Raven! How does it feel?"

_YEAH! I've never felt so alive! WHOO!_

"...Good, I guess..." I said back to him, not making eye contact with him.

"I heard the from the other pilots that the job's tough. But I'm not driven to do such a thing. Nooo, sir! ...So, why did you go into this business?"

"...Personal reasons... I really don't want to talk about it..."

"Sorry, 'bout that."

"It's okay."

"...Would ya mind if I asked how you got that scar on your face, there?"

I leaned back in the chair and saw through the rear view mirror the painful memory of _that_ day, starting down the middle of my right eyebrow and drawing a vertical line down (making a small jump where my green eye was) a inch past my bottom eyelid.

_Count your blessings that you closed your eyes at the last second and still have all of your sight to this day._

I closed my eyes. "Sorry," I replied. "that's personal, too."

"Just thought I'd as-" The truck driver's voice was quickly muffled by the annoying sound of a small jet engine, flying very low.

_Not one... three. There's three._

The truck driver stopped the vehicle and leaned closer to get a look at the jets turning around, aiming their guns at the truck. He tipped his baseball cap up. "It looks like Murakumo's not going to leave us be... hey, where the hell are you going?"

As soon as the truck stopped, I pushed my door open and ran towards the back of the truck while dodging machine gun fire.

I slipped under the heavy cloth where the dormant AC laid. "This is the last time I'm going to even bother with this AC design!" I said while jumping into the cockpit, and started the machine up. "After that, it will kiss my-"

I quickly commanded the AC to stand and throw the covers aside... not even knowing the cloth would knock one of the jets out of sky and send it crashing to the ground.

_Wait, I wasn't ready!_

"System engaged." the monotoned computer announced.

_Now, I'm ready!_

I carefully aimed at one of the jets with the rifle and started firing...

...only to have it stop after a few rounds.

_Jammed?_

I looked at the weapon box... zero rounds.

_Out of ammo already? Dammit! Why did I use most of it up on the test?_

Venting my anger, I threw the rifle at the jet, hoping to knock it out of the sky. A direct hit, and the damaged jet veered towards the other jet and collided in a eerie, but beautiful array of fireworks.

_Damn you, crappy AC for being lucky!_

"Kid!" I heard the truck driver over my radio. "There's one coming from behind!"

I quickly turned and saw the MT (this one, built like an AC, with a long range pulse gun and a close range punch) hovering towards me.

Then, the image popped into my mind again: the red AC flying towards me.

_Don't come closer..._

I drew back my left fist and fired up the laser blade and threw a punch at the MT that blew a hole in the middle of the machine. Not only scraps of wire and alloy, but blood, as well, could be seen on my metal hand.

I trembled at the sight of this...

_Remember, this isn't a simulation anymore. This is real..._

"Dammit!" I hissed while punching the monitor, fighting back tears. "I'll never become like _you_, I swear!"

"Hoo boy!" I heard the truck driver call over the radio. "That was some piloting there!"

"...Thanks." I replied back, attempting to smile.

**To be continued...**


	3. Moving In

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the characters: Kaze, Chief, Pyromaniac, Tsubasa, Bug, Rebel and Hyper. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

AN: I'm shifting gears. From here on out (or when I change my mind), it's now a third person's perspective.

Chapter 3: Moving In

Another sun-less morning greeted the underground warehouse-like base of TALON (an acronym for The Aggressive Line Of Newcomers).

"Mornin', Chief..." the redheaded pilot muttered to the burly gray-haired veteran pilot, working on his AC: a heavyweight caterpillar model with grenade launchers for arms and a dual missile launcher carried on its back.

"...Second to the last one up, Pyromaniac." Chief grunted back. "A new record..."

"Is the new pilot here, yet?"

"He got here last night."

"Really?"

"Just don't wake him, 'kay? He got into an ambush by Murakumo..."

"Is he alright?"

"...He is fine, Pyro..." muttered a third voice. The third pilot, an enigmatic sort, with long naturally white hair and cold blue eyes, sat at the meeting table reading a copy of _Battle Royale_ ...a rare find in this day and age. "You need not worry..."

"Tsubasa?" Chief asked. "Didn't even hear ya come in!"

"...If you want to see the new pilot's prowess," he said without looking away from the book. "Bug managed to extract the black box from the AC and now he and Rebel are watching the two battles. ...I might as well add that I am impressed."

Chief and Pyromaniac gasped at two things: first, Tsubasa talking for _this_ long within an hour, and second, the fact that Tsubasa was impressed at a newcomer's piloting abilities.

"Be right back!" The stunned pilots said as they rushed over to the monitor and watched the replay of the newcomer's battles.

"It's almost supernatural, I tell ya!" the young pilot with the round framed glasses known as Bug, noted as he watched the second battle begin.

"The Nest said that he got forty hours of trainin' in." one of the two female pilots on the team, Rebel, noted. "But that's gotta be a lie! He threw his own rifle at the enemy and knocked two fighter jets from the sky. That's something only ace pilots could do!"

Everyone took their eyes off the monitor and looked at Tsubasa, still reading his book.

"I told you he was good..." he noted as he turned the page.

The pilots quickly looked back at the monitor.

"His last move's really strange..." Pyromaniac noted. "Driving his fist into an MT that could surely punch him back and send him flying. That's suicide!"

"No, that was survival." Chief corrected. "He saw something that we couldn't see."

"A hidden weapon?" Bug asked.

"No, it was something only his mind's eye could see."

Tsubasa glared in shock at Chief, almost dropping his book.

The other pilots fell into a confused silence, just as the new pilot entered the meeting room/garage. He fell into embarrassment over the silence.

"Did I get up too late?" the blushing Kaze asked, rubbing his head. "I-I'm sorry if I did. It won't happen again."

The pilots looked over at Kaze and blinked once in chorus.

"Um..." the nervous Kaze stuttered.

"You're Kaze, right?" Bug asked.

"Yeah... Why do you ask?"

The pilots quickly turned and looked back at the monitor and turned back to look at Kaze.

"I wanna give 'em the tour around!" Pyromaniac cheered, raising his hand. "Me! Me! Me-"

"The hell you will!" Rebel belted. "You gave a tour to a newcomer the last time! And that was when Hyper moved in!"

"Now wait... Maybe we should settle this over in a battle..." Bug suggested.

"Fine with me!" the hotheaded pilot said, rolling up his black sleeves and putting his fists out in front of him.

"An _AC_ battle." the nerdy pilot corrected.

"Aww..." Pyromaniac whimpered, dropping his fists. "But, my AC's being repaired on!"

"Then it'll have to wait. In the meantime, I'll take Kaze on the tour."

Rebel gave Bug a death-glare. "Trying to be sneaky, are ya?"

"W-what makes you say that?" the stunned pilot asked. "I-I wouldn't do such a thing, really!"

"Uh, where did Chief and the new kid run off to?" a confused Pyromaniac asked, looking the space where Kaze and Chief once stood.

"Chief went to give Kaze a tour around while you three were fighting..." Tsubasa informed while staring at the book. "You should really mind your manners when company arrives."

"And you do?" Pyromaniac shot back.

Tsubasa looked away from the book and glared at Pyromaniac with his midnight blue eyes.

"One death-glare, and it's only morning." the redhead pilot said, hiding behind the short Bug. "Is it going to be one of _those_ days?"

"...One more thing." the monotoned pilot said, looking back into his book. "Hyper is coming back..."

"Really?" Rebel asked. "When?"

No sooner was her question answered when a "THUD!" came from outside of the garage.

"I'm home, everyone!" the cheerful voice of the second female pilot, Hyper, sang from the white AC.

Tsubasa turned the page from his book. "...Right now."

**To be continued...**


	4. Allies

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the characters: Kaze, Chief, Pyromaniac, Tsubasa, Bug, Rebel and Hyper. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 4: Allies

An hour had past before Chief and Kaze arrived at the final stop of the tour.

"A computer room?" Kaze asked.

"Not really..." Chief responded. "This is the place where we customize our AC's. Just pick out the parts and weapons, give it some color, throw on your personal emblem, and you're done! ...Though, I gotta admit, it takes longer than five minutes, seein' that you got a wide variety at your fingertips."

"You have all of the AC parts here?"

"Bingo! 'Every Raven for themselves' is not our policy here! We share the parts we have and salvage parts from others. So, don't worry if you think if you're taking someone else's weapon, we have extras!"

"Good to hear..."

"Well, I'll leave you be so you can contemplate on your design." Chief said as he headed for the door. "Oh, and lunch is served in two hours."

"Thanks!"

Chief left, leaving Kaze to begin on his AC design.

_I'll make it look like the one that I first piloted..._ he thought, starting with the head designs.

He drew the image in his mind: the black and red mid-weight bi-pedal AC, armed with a deadly machine gun in its right hand and carried a mid-size missile launcher and a small silver energy cannon on its back.

_At least, I know more now than I did then. You won't take me down easily this time!_

For the next hour, Kaze was deep in thought, designing his ideal AC, until he noticed that he was being watched from behind. He closed his eyes and sighed. "Can I help you?" he asked.

"Nope." the voice of Pyromaniac replied, leaning on the back of the chair. "Just lookin' at the new AC that's all. It must beat piloting the ol' test model, huh?"

"I'm not sure. I haven't even tried it out, yet."

_You lie! You lie! _Kaze's mind screamed. _There was that one time..._

"Well, when you get the chance to pilot it, I wanna be your first opponent!"

Kaze turned a half-circle in the chair to look at the wild redhead pilot dressed in a black long-sleeved shirt with red flames coming from the bottom.

"I thought your AC was being repaired on?" asked Kaze.

"It is..." whimpered Pyromaniac. "But, it gets really boring fighting the same old AC's every other day..."

The person, wearing a red bandana on her head, standing behind Pyro sent a flying open hand to the back of his head. "You better not be callin' my AC old!" barked the voice of Rebel.

"I wasn't..." muttered Pyro, rubbing the back of his sore head.

"And I guess you didn't introduce yourself to the newcomer, yet, huh?" Rebel asked as she folded her arms in front of her chest.

"I was going to do that before you showed up..."

"Well, anyways, welcome to TALON, Kaze." Rebel announced. "My name's Rebel. I pilot the quad-leg, Dust Devil. But, you're not gonna see much of me in battle, since I also work as one of the team's mechanics."

"The story goes," Pyro added. "we asked the Nest for a mechanic, but we got a Rebel, instead."

Rebel slapped Pyro in the back of the head once more, but this time, a little bit harder. "At least _try _and be nice for once!" she barked.

_What a strange team..._ Kaze thought.

"And this is Pyromaniac," Rebel noted. "Pyro for short. He pilots a heavyweight bi-pedal, flamethrowin' AC he likes to call Firestorm. And I'd feel real sorry for you if you got partnered with him on any mission. He can be quite the pain in the ass."

"Am not..." Pyro whined, still rubbing the back of his head.

"Oh, grow up, will ya?" a new voice asked. This one of the young pilot, Bug.

"I wanna, but Rebel won't let me..."

"Crybaby..." Bug muttered under his breath before asking, "Hey, are you guys doing your introductions now?"

"We just got done with ours," Rebel replied. "but you can go ahead and introduce yourself if you want."

Bug nodded and began, "Around here, my name's Bug. I'm the youngest pilot on this team (...unless you're younger than thirteen). I pilot a reverse-joint leg model AC that I call Mantis."

Kaze smiled back. "A pleasure to meet all of you."

"No, no, you haven't met everyone yet." Rebel noted. "If you're done customizing that AC of yours, we can go and look for the others."

"I finished as soon as Pyro barged in." Kaze replied.

Rebel turned and stared down at Pyro.

"What?" Pyro asked. "I was only curious..."

"Hey, wait." Bug said. "Kaze, you're not done yet."

"I'm not?" the newcomer asked.

"You still gotta give the AC a name and an emblem."

"He can work on the emblem later." Pyro said. "I just wanna see what the AC's name will be and then go find the rest of the team."

Kaze turned the chair back so that he faced the computer screen and the blank name box. _Damn. _he thought._ The first AC didn't really have a name. I guess I'll just have to make one up..._ With his fingers on the keys, he began typing:

"M... e... c... h... a..." he muttered.

"Mecha?" Pyro questioned the AC's name. "That's a little too original, don't you think?"

"Original, but mysterious," Rebel commented. "like the AC itself. I like that name."

"Good name, Kaze." Bug cheered, adjusting his glasses.

"Thanks." Kaze said with a smile.

_That's right. Mecha: the AC that will, one day soon, defeat Nine-Ball._

**To be continued...**


	5. Allies: Part II

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 5: Allies: Part 2

"New pilot! New pilot!" cheered the young female pilot in the uniform **(1)** with the blonde pigtails as she ran down the hallway to meet up with the four pilots exiting the AC design room.

"Hey, Hyper." Rebel called. "You saved us the trouble of finding you!"

"Great!" the energetic girl replied before she turned her gaze at the newcomer. "So, what's your name?"

"K-Kaze." the stunned pilot said with a very slight blush. "And yours?"

The young girl saluted to the newcomer. "My name is Hyper Fangirl!" she announced. "Hyper for short. I pilot AC-195: a mid-weight bi-pedal AC, armed with beam weaponry! **(2)** And I also came here to inform that lunch will be ready soon and the last one at the table has to clean the dishes!"

"Oh, no!" Pyro said as he ran down the hallway that Hyper came from. "It's not gonna be me this time!"

"Come back here!" Rebel and Bug yelled as they pursued Pyro, while Hyper merrily skipped along behind them.

...While Kaze stood with a stunned face. _Strange people... _he thought.

"You are Kaze," a cold voice said from behind him. "correct?"

The startled Kaze turned around to find the person with that voice. A tall, thin built man dressed in a gray uniform with white hair that went to his shoulders and an unemotional blue-eyed stare that sent a chill up Kaze's spine.

Kaze swallowed nervously. "That's right."

The tall pilot closed his eyes. "It would seem that you excel in laser blade maneuvers quite well... almost as good as me." He opened his eyes once more. "However, your left hand is not your dominant hand..."

"Yeah." the stunned Kaze replied. "How did you know that?"

"I watched a recording of your first two battles. ...I am sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Tsubasa. I command Silent Blade: a medium-weight bi-pedal AC that is able to master close-range combat with ease..."

"I guess you're one of the best pilots on the team, huh?" Kaze asked.

"...Based on the arena rank of this team itself, I am considered to be the best. ...However, based on the Nest's arena rank, I am only among the top ten..."

Kaze was stunned by the fact that he was in the presence of one of the top-ranked pilots. "T-that's amazing!" he said.

Tsubasa nodded silently. "...We should go eat. ...Everyone is waiting."

With that said, the two pilots walked down the hallway, that held the team's sleeping quarters, out to the meeting room that also served as the dining room.

"Attention!" Kaze heard Chief say. "Salute!"

As he looked over, he saw that he was being greeted by the entire team, standing as though they were military officers, saluting to him.

"Kaze," Chief continued. "on behalf of myself and the rest of the team, we welcome you to The Aggressive Line Of Newcomers!" He walked over to Kaze and presented him with a small box. "This is a gift from all of us. We hope you enjoy it."

"Um... Thank you." Kaze said with a polite bow.

"Well, go on!" Pyro said. "Open it!"

Carefully pulling away the cardboard cover and the tissue paper, Kaze discovered that he was given a pair of black finger-cut gloves with TALON's emblem, a swooping Raven and the word "TALON" encased within the moon, on the back of each glove.

He slipped each glove on the respected hand when he noticed that everyone on the team was wearing the exact same pair. He also had to admit that the gloves matched well with the black pants and the red shirt that he wore.

"Let's hear it for Kaze!" Hyper said before the entire base exploded with cheers and applause.

For the first time in two years, Kaze felt like he was accepted...

**To be continued...**

In case you were wondering...

**(1).** A Federation uniform(?)

**(2). **If you think of Wing Gundam (see Bonus: AC Designs), then you got an idea of what her AC looks like.

And to be on the safe side, I don't own any of the Gundam series (UC, AC, etc.), so please don't sue...


	6. Corporations

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 6: Corporations

"And all of that you say is true?" asked the president of the corporation known as Murakumo Millennium as looked of out the massive window in his office and to the sun setting off in the distance.

"...Yes, sir..." Yamagata, a subordinate of Murakumo (who, yesterday, acted as a spy and drove the cargo truck that Kaze rode upon), muttered, glaring at the president's back. "I had witnessed this with my own eyes."

"You're absolutely certain that an entry-level AC pilot managed to take out three aerial units and a MT with an entry-test AC?"

"That's right. What are your orders for dealing with this pilot?"

The president scanned his eyes at the city below, a city that he created. "We'll do nothing, for now. Of all the pilots that I've witnessed in the past years, that boy's actions was nothing more than a fluke! It'll never happen again!"

"I have a bad feeling about this one, sir." Yamagata objected. "What if his piloting abilities, like the one I saw, wasn't really a fluke?"

The president turned and looked at Yamagata with his gray-eyed stare. "If that is the case, I will order you to send Sora out to sanction him."

"You want to send out my own son?" an appalled Yamagata asked.

The president looked back to the view of the above-ground world, the sky tinted a dark blue and the stars, one by one, coming into view. "He has proven himself to be quite a capable pilot. He is ten times stronger than that pilot that trained for a measly forty hours!" He rose an open hand out to his side and then quickly closed it. "He'd crush that weakling in a matter of seconds! Haha! I'd pay to see that!"

"B-but... My s-son..." Yamagata interjected with a trembling lip.

"No buts! When the matter appears to be critical, he will be sent out. For once, he'll go out on real missions and leave no opposing AC alive!"

Yamagata was left with nothing else to say.

"In the meantime, I want you to begin Project Mobius as soon as possible," the president ordered. "do I make myself clear, Yamagata?"

"...Yes, sir." Yamagata muttered with a bow before he left the president's office.

Standing out in the hallway, the subordinate pulled a picture from his pant's pocket. A picture of a younger version of himself and his only son, four years old at the time, riding piggy-back. Smiling as though they were oblivious to the world around them.

"...Sora..." he blubbered as the tears began to flow. "...where have you gone to?"

"I am right here, Father..." an eerie voice said from behind.

Yamagata didn't want to look, he refused... but he had no other choice. His eyes took notice of the gray uniform-clad young man standing before him with a head of short jet black hair and cold sapphire-colored eyes staring back at him. "Y-you're not my son!" he belted.

"Of course I am, Father..." the teenager corrected. "I am Sora Yamagata. My father is Ryu Yamagata: one of the five executives of Murakumo Millennium. My mother-"

"That's enough! ...Please, snap outta of it..." Ryu got to his hands and knees, staring at the floor. "You were never like this... I wanted you live a normal life, not to become a test subject to a rich and greedy bastard!"

"Does that mean you will not begin Project Mobius?" Sora asked. "Do not worry, Father. I will be flexible with your actions as you see fit."

Ryu looked up at his son in surprise. He stood up, balancing on his shaky feet and knees, and embraced his son. As usual, as it had been for five years, Sora did not hug back.

"I'd never start that project!" Ryu replied, the tears still flowing. "I do not want you to go out in battle and have you die before me..."

"Father..." Sora uttered as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a black object. "You need not worry, Father, for you have disobeyed the orders of the president of Murakumo Millennium..."

Ryu opened his eyes, wide. He had heard that phrase being recited by Sora many times before... then had to bear witness at what happened afterward. It could only mean one thing...

Sora pointed the black object at his father's chest, right below the ribs... and cocked the hammer.

"Sora..." Ryu whimpered. Fear kept him from freeing his hands. "...Don't do this, please! ...I beg of you!"

And for once in five years, his son smiled. "You do not need to worry, Father. I will not die before you..."

"Sora..." Ryu said, almost sensing the trigger being pulled. He embraced his son in a tighter hug, hoping, somehow, it would change his mind at the last second. "_Sora-!_"

The sound of a gunshot muffled Ryu's last word to his son. His bear-hug hold relaxed all too quickly.

The assailant's smile faded back to a cold and emotionless smirk as Ryu slowly slumped to the floor with a fatal bullet wound... and a picture with a bullet hole, right through the two faces.

"Commence Project Mobius..." Sora muttered. "The first step is to construct an AC that can easily sanction those that oppose Murakumo..."

**--...--...--...--...--**

The three walked down the hall: the president of Chrome, his executive and a prison guard who was ordered to escort the two to a certain cell...

Each held their silence, listening to the mind-numbing chorus of the deranged and angry prisoners talking, calling and swearing to the visitors.

The executive bravely dared to shift his eyes to one of the prisoners reaching out through the bars...

"Pay them no mind, Sanjuro." the president, walking in front of the executive, sternly spoke. "All they want is attention, and they sought an unlawful way as a last resort."

Sanjuro looked away as he passed the prisoner and continued to stare at the back of the president's head of gray hair. "You're not going to let this rumor rest will you, sir?" he asked.

"About Murakumo's elite team of AC pilots?" the president asked back. "No, of course not. If those fools are creating such a unit, we should counter now before they even have a chance to strike!"

"The problem is we don't know how far they are in their training or how many pilots they have..."

The president chuckled. "Relax, m'boy... There's really no need to be pessimistic. Murakumo still cannot rival our military strength after the great loss they had in the Zam City Massacre. Now, they're mostly throwing the taxpayers' money around on useless, outdated and obsolete technology for medical research, rather than on advanced weaponry and armor!"

"Sir, ...um, _we_ lost at Zam City..." Sanjuro pointed out.

"Only because they got help by Murakumo-loyal AC pilots! The bastards!"

The three made it to the end of the hall a minute later, surrounding a cell that housed a sleeping prisoner.

"Well, here's the one that you wanted to see, Mr. Taka." the prison guard said.

The prisoner quickly awoke to the sounds outside of his cell, glancing at the three silhouettes looking at him.

"...It's been a long time, Berserker." the president greeted the convict with a friendly wave.

Berserker rushed over to the bars, looking at his ally, through the steel bars, with delight.

"How would you like to be fighting for Chrome once more?" the president continued.

Berserker gasped in joy. It was a silent gasp, however, as he had refused to talk since he was charged of his heinous crime.

Sanjuro, on the other hand, was stunned. "Sir, are you sure about this?" he whispered to the president. "He was the one that deliberately leveled a crowded shelter at Zam City, remember..."

"I'll make sure he's under strict supervision, Sanjuro. Both on and off the battlefield." the president replied in a hiss. "Besides, he'll possibly won't remember anything after he's goes through a life-changing experience..." He looked back at Berserker. "I cannot grant you your full freedom, only the freedom to fight as an AC pilot. Under those conditions, are you still willing to come along?"

Berserker nodded. A gleam in his eyes and a wicked smile pinned to his face.

"An AC pilot?" Sanjuro asked.

"Am I spoiling him too much?" the president countered.

"No, sir. Not at all..." He looked over to Berserker and thought, _'Life-changing experience?' I wonder what he means by that?_

**To be continued...**


	7. First Mission

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 7: First Mission

"Hey, Kaze!" the voice of Pyro called. "Time to get up and face the day!"

Kaze turned away from the voice and wrapped the covers on him tighter. "Can you back in five minutes and let me sleep a little bit more?"

Pyro sighed. "All right... But, you're gonna miss your first mission!"

Kaze threw the covers off him and sat up, staring at Pyro, not even minding that his brown hair had been tossed every which way (and that it looked better than Pyro's hair...).

"Mornin'!" Pyro cheered.

Kaze smiled back as he got up and shoved the never-_this_-energetic-in-the-morning pilot out of his room. "Give me five minutes to get dressed, and I'll meet up with you, 'kay?"

Three minutes passed when Kaze exited his room, dressed in an unadorned tan short-sleeved shirt and black pants (the uniform hardly worn by TALON members; another present that team pitched in on), tying the laces on his slightly worn black boots. "Okay, ready!" he said to the patient Pyro.

"Uh-uh-uh!" the redhead objected, pointing to Kaze's bare hands. "You missed something..."

Kaze looked at his hands, then realized what he was missing. He quickly went back to the table by his bed, retrieved his pair of the team's trademark gloves and slipped them on his hands.

Pyro smiled. "Now, you're ready!"

Another minute passed until Kaze and Pyro entered the meeting room where they stood and saluted to Chief and Tsubasa: the only two people, besides them, that were awake.

"AC pilots: Pyro and Kaze, reporting for duty, Chief!" Pyro announced.

"At ease, you two..." Chief muttered back, not fully awake. "Have a seat and wait for the others to get up."

The pilots did as they were told and sat before the large square table, with Tsubasa sitting across from them, reading the book.

"So, Kaze," Chief said. "how do you like it here?"

"It's great." the newcomer replied. "I have nothing to object to..." He then pointed to Pyro. "except for the wake-up call, here."

"Pyro..." Chief groaned, giving a sharp glare to the wild pilot.

"What?" Pyro asked. "He was going to miss his first mission with us!"

"If that happens again, Kaze..." Tsubasa muttered, not looking up from the book. "you can always hit him..."

"Aw, come on, Tsubasa..." Pyro whimpered.

"Aside from him, did you sleep well?" Chief asked.

"It was a little on and off," Kaze honestly admitted. "but I'm getting used to it."

"Good, good..."

The last three pilots entered the meeting room and saluted to Chief. "AC pilots: Rebel, Bug and Hyper, reporting for duty, Chief!" Rebel sounded off.

"At ease." Chief said as he pushed a button on a remote. "Have a seat and let's get started, shall we?"

A screen appeared before the team (to be more detailed, to Kaze's left) showing a map of the world, both above-ground and underground.

"This mission is a repeat of last week's mission," Chief began. "in which most of us knows what happened..."

Pyro hung his head sadly. "Ix-nay on the C-Ay ashing-bay..." he whimpered.

"But I'm going to inform of the mission and its requirements once more so that everyone knows what's going on."

"...Please don't..." Pyro muttered.

"Our client is a former member of the AC team REDEYE, who had just learned that their number two pilot, Lazy-Eye, had left the team for reasons unknown to everyone but her."

"...She's a demon, man... Scary as hell..."

"We're being asked once more by our client to coax her to come on our team and, yes, try and beat our rivaling team."

"Don't send me back there..."

"The reward this time is double: ten-thousand Credits will be given on the successful completion of this mission. I've decided to send three AC's into this mission: Dust Devil..."

Rebel stood up and replied, "I accept the mission."

"...Mecha..."

Kaze bravely stood up. "I accept the mission." he said with a slightly nervous tone. All the while, his mind cheered, _My first mission... I can't wait!_

"Please don't pick me..." Pyro whimpered.

"...and Firestorm."

"Oh, c'mon, Chief! Don't make me go back there!" Pyro objected.

"She's not gonna bother with you anymore, Pyro." Chief said. "She's scared you to the point where you've wet your pants!"

"That's a figure of speech, and you know it!"

"What I'm tryin' to say is that you shouldn't be worried! I'm sure that Rebel and Kaze would be more than willing to help you out."

"Of course!" Rebel replied. "And don't worry, Chief. If Kaze has any questions, I'll make sure they're answered."

"Don't forget about me!" Pyro added as he stood up from his seat. "You're not the only know-it-all on the team!"

"Does that mean you'll join them?" Chief asked.

Pyro sighed, now knowing that he made the mistake of standing up. "...Yes, I accept the mission..." he muttered.

"Then the three of you get to your AC's and the rest of you to your stations!"

The rest of the team stood before Chief and saluted simultaneously before going their separate ways.

On their way to the other side of the garage, Pyro couldn't help yelling, "Damn! It looks better life-size!"

Kaze, not sure what Pyro was blabbing about now, ran over to where he was, to find the black and red AC standing before them on a platform.

"Wow..." Kaze said in awe.

"I better quit gawking or I'll start getting jealous." Pyro said as he ran to his AC, painted red, orange and gold, and hopped on the small elevator that sent him to the AC's cockpit.

Kaze did the same and hopped into the cockpit. The lukewarm air inside the new AC gave him goosebumps and the cold seat didn't help either.

Everything looked the same as the test model: the three monitors, left, middle and right, that showed the outside surroundings; the two foot pedals; the control stick at the end of each arm of the chair (left controlling the left hand and right for the right hand...), as well as the weapon and radar boxes.

Kaze took a deep breath, strapped the five-point harness on and started up the AC.

"Come in, Kaze." the voice of Tsubasa called on his radio. "Give me a status report."

"This is Kaze." the pilot replied. "AP is full. Energy is at full power. All weapons are fully loaded. All systems are green. Awaiting your confirmation, over."

"I copy. Please wait until you hear from Bug."

"Roger."

A few seconds past. Kaze sat patiently, hands on the controls.

"Kaze, do you copy?" the voice of Bug asked over the radio.

"This is Kaze, I read you loud and clear."

"Okay. Keep the AC still. I'm sending it up the elevator right now."

He felt the jolt of the AC as it moved up to the second floor: the base's rooftop.

"You're free to walk around now, Kaze." Bug said. "Wait for the order from Hyper."

"Roger."

"Quit sounding so polite, Kaze." Pyro, who was already on the roof when Kaze arrived. "This isn't a test."

"I can't help it." Kaze replied.

"Ready whenever you are, Pyro!" the voice of Hyper called to Firestorm's pilot.

"Roger, Hyper." Pyro called back, moving the AC onto another platform. "I'm stepping onto the catapult right now."

"Confirm your launch when ready."

"Give me a sec. I'm gonna give some pointers to Kaze before I take off, 'kay?"

"Roger!"

"Kaze, listen up." Pyro called to the newcomer. "This is new, but it's easy. All you got to do is step on the platform, tell Hyper when you're ready and then wait for the green light at the edge of roof to send you off. Here, I'll be the example." He cleared his throat. "Hyper, this is Pyro. I'm ready to launch."

"Roger, Pyro." Hyper replied. "Get ready for take-off!"

The light on the other end of the roof blinked red.

"Kaze, one more thing." Pyro said.

The light went from red to yellow.

"Don't forget to scream!"

The light switched once more, yellow to green, and Pyro's cheer could be heard as he flew across the rooftop and out towards the other side of the city.

_Okay..._ Kaze thought as the platform retracted back towards Mecha. _Piece of cake. It's just like the test..._

"The catapult is ready whenever you are, Kaze." Hyper said over the radio.

"Roger." Kaze said as Mecha stepped onto the platform.

"It looks like you're in. Good piloting!"

"Thanks, Hyper." He took in one more deep breath. "This is Kaze. I'm ready to launch!"

"Roger, Kaze!"

"Good luck, kid!" Chief rooted.

The light on the other side of the roof flashed red.

"Take care out there!" Bug added.

"Do not get into any trouble..." Tsubasa muttered.

The light changed from red to yellow.

'Don't forget to scream,' ran through the mind of the relaxed Kaze as the light changed to green. He felt his entire body being pushed back into the chair as Mecha set off for its first adventure somewhere in the dark underground city.

**To be continued...**


	8. Past

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 8: Past

Kaze landed. He didn't know how, but he did it...

"Kaze, you okay?" he heard Pyro ask.

He opened his eyes and the sight of concrete welcomed him from the monitor. "Pyro..." he called back. "Did I just make a total fool out of myself and fall, face first, on the ground?"

"Heck, no!" Pyro quickly replied. "You just made a _nice_ two-point landing then knelt down to stop yourself from skidding."

It explained why Mecha was looking at the ground as though it was showing gratitiude to an invisible presence.

"And, you forgot to scream!" Pyro added.

"Sorry." Kaze said as Mecha stood up and scanned the one of the crossroads of the desolate northeastern Isaac City. "I was bound by shock from the catapult that I totally forgot about it."

"Don't worry about it, Kaze." the voice of Rebel called as her sand colored AC, Dust Devil, came flying into view. "The first time on the catapult is always the worst!"

The four-legged AC landed, farther than Mecha and Firestorm, with a smooth glide along the uneasy road.

"Hail, hail! The team's all here!" Pyro cheered. "You guys ready?"

"I'm ready." Kaze called back. "But, exactly how far do we have to go?"

"We're in the middle of area B-4 right now." Rebel informed. With the sniper rifle, Dust Devil aimed the barrel at the black hole to the west. "Lazy-Eye resides within the B-2 section."

"So, it's really a hop, skip and a boost away!" Pyro said, making Firestorm jump in the air and adding a boost while in mid-air.

"But, be on your guard." Rebel added. "We're also going through the H-1 area."

"You mean H-1 Crater!" the shocked Pyro asked as Firestorm landed. "We have go through that death-trap this time?"

H-1 Crater. Kaze had heard of that place before. To be exact, he witnessed the once-called B-3 area become a hellish battlefield on that one unfaithful day. It was in that place that drove him to become a Raven in the first place.

He tried to drive the painful thoughts from his mind: the rubble, the dead bodies scattered everywhere, the pilot dying in his arms, the younger version of himself screaming and _that _wretched AC pointing the gun at him...

"Kaze!" Pyro called to Mecha's pilot a third time.

He snapped out of his shock and quickly returned to the present time.

"You okay, man?" Pyro asked.

Kaze took as few deep breaths in, attempting to relax his grip on the controls. "I'm fine." he replied. "Just the name H-1..."

"What about it?" Rebel asked.

Kaze shook his head. "It's nothing... Let's go." Casting away the memories for now, he put his foot on the left pedal and began leading the way towards Lazy-Eye's position.

...Oblivious to the fact that the three traveling AC's were being watched by a pair of eyes inside one of the many, long-since, evacuated buildings.

"Boss," the recon agent said into his hands-free comm-system. "ya got some company comin'."

"How many are there this time?" a voice asked from within the earpiece.

"Three, as before. But it looks like that catapillar AC isn't with the heavy bi-pedal and the four-legged one."

"Who is it now?"

"A mid-bi-pedal. I haven't seen this one before. Looks kinda new..."

The "boss" grinned at the last sentence. "All units, prepare for an ambush in B-3! Keep 'em hostage 'til I get there! I wanna see this new AC for myself!"

"Roger." a chorus of voices replied.

**To be continued...**


	9. Ambush

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 9: Ambush

A few blocks before the AC trio reached the B-3 area, the pilot of Mecha came up with a question.

"So, what's with the bad blood between TALON and REDEYE?" Kaze asked, looking to the gliding Dust Devil. "Why is this Lazy-Eye character so important to our team?"

"REDEYE really doesn't play fair when it comes to AC customizing and battling." Rebel began. "The team uses weaponry that's strictly forbidden by the Nest."

"And what's TALON's part in all of this?"

"Chief and the leader of REDEYE have been fighting like this well before me and Rebel came on the team." Pyro replied. "He's trying to prove that you can unlock a pilot's true potential by using an AC that hasn't been illegally modified. He also thinks that having a former member of his rival's faction would give us an edge in this battle."

"As long as she doesn't use that illegal AC of hers..." Rebel warned.

"Don't start in on that!" Pyro whined as the three now entered the ravaged B-3 area.

_Just don't look..._ Kaze thought, hoping the memories would keep at bay and not let him interfere with the mission. _Don't let what you see bother you..._

"Though, I'd really hate to admit it," Rebel said. "but I think you could've won that last time."

"Yeah," Pyro agreed. "but I lost! I lost to a coward, a wimp and a cheater!"

As if the last word echoed throughout the old district park... six strange explosions of earth surrounded the stunned pilots and their AC's, each with a dot of glowing red light.

"Ah, hell!" Rebel belted. "Not now!"

"Not the Knights!" Pyro whimpered as the silver-bluish AC's came into view, rifles drawn at the three. "Please not them!"

"Well, well, well..." a southern-accented voice of a middle-aged woman came over the radio. "if y'all got somthin' to say about me," The AC came into view, coming from the general direction of the operation area, covered in a giant shroud of burlap with a fearsome glowing red eye coming from the AC's head. "ya might as well say to my face!"

Firestorm quickly hid behind Mecha, hoping the red glare wouldn't hit him. "...I'll be good." Pyro muttered.

Unconsciously, Mecha aimed the machine gun at the enemy in front of it, only to have it knocked out of its hand in a fraction of a second!

"Don't ya try an' play 'hero' here!" the pilot of the cloth-clad AC said, revealing the golden rifle in its right hand, the barrel exhausting smoke after expending a round. "Y'all won't like how it ends..."

Kaze gritted his teeth and held back his words. Mecha freezing in its place.

"I'm guessin' that ya must be the newcomer that I heard about..." the pilot continued, adding a slight laugh at the end. "Come now, don't be shy, young'n."

"We're good as dead now..." Pyro whined.

A bullet from the gold gun grazed Firestorm's head. "Pipe down!" the southern pilot ordered. "I wasn't talkin' to you, was I?"

"...I am." Kaze hissed to the pilot. "I'm a newcomer! So what?"

"'So what?' That just means ya got lucky, that's all!"

"What do you mean?"

"Knights, drive th' other two AC's back to the area border. I'm gonna pick on this young'n for a while."

Doing as they were instructed, the six Knights made their moving barricade and shoved Firestorm and Dust Devil back to the edge of the B-4 sector.

"Kaze, be careful!" Rebel warned.

"If those two make any stupid moves," the head pilot called to the knights. "don't hesitate to kill 'em!" The strange AC turned its glare to Mecha. "So, your name is Kaze, huh? I reckon I should be polite and introduce myself, as well."

Kaze said nothing in return, hoping she would turn away for a second.

"Th' name's Laze-Eye. I was th' number two pilot on my former team and currently th' number seven in the arena!"

_Crap, she's good!_ Kaze thought.

"Since you're a newcomer, y'all won't take it seriously if I challenge ya, hm?"

"What do you mean?" Kaze asked without fear.

"It's easy! All ya gotta do is pull this cloak off of my AC before I whittle your AC down to scrap!"

"Don't accept it!" Pyro called to Kaze. "You'll end up like I did!"

"Y'all have no other choice, kid!" Lazy-Eye countered. "If ya don't accept the challenge, then your friends will be given a bullet burial!"

Kaze hesitated, noticing something over the cloaked AC's shoulder: the color of blood, steel and darkness, in the form of a giant suit of armor. _I-it can't be... _he thought. _Not here... not now..._ His mind brought back all the painful memories in full force, as though he was reliving that day.

"Well, c'mon, kid." Lazy-Eye beckoned. "Make your move-"

The sudden jolt from the AC startled her, now noticing that in front of her was Mecha, the tip of the laser blade drawn at her AC's red eye. "H-holy... shit!" she hissed, looking at Mecha's right hand, tightly holding the discarded cloak. "In all my years, I've never seen an AC move that fast!" She could almost feel Kaze's bitter glare upon her.

"This is no time for games!" Kaze hissed. "Leave while you still have the chance!"

"Leave? What the hell do ya mean? I'm not going to run from a kid like you!"

"Then I have no other choice..." While retracting the laser blade in its left hand, Mecha shoved the black, silver, and gold AC off to its left, just as a massive ball of fire flew by them, destroying two of the Knights from the barricade.

The four remaining Knights, as well as Dust Devil and Firestorm, flew back a street block in the B-4 area, avoiding the blast.

"I told you this place was a death-trap!" Pyro yelled to Rebel.

"Can it!" Rebel scolded back as she carefully zoomed in on the assailant: a red AC with the number 9 painted on the side of its left arm. "...You've got to be kidding me..." she hissed.

"Boss, incoming AC!" one of the Knight pilots yelled to Lazy-Eye... before he and the other three identical AC's were spilt in half by the speeding red AC's laser blade...

**To be continued...**


	10. Enemy

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 10: Enemy

There it stood before the four remaining AC's where the fallen Knights laid. The red AC, armed with a pulse gun, a two-lock missile launcher and a grenade launcher... The infamous Nine-Ball: the top-ranked AC in the arena.

"I just got word that someone here was lookin' for me..." the pilot of Nine-Ball, Hustler One, informed. "...judging by those incompetent Knights, I guess that person wasn't in the blast."

_Don't look at him..._ Kaze thought, attempting to loosen his grip on the controls. _Keep calm..._

"Speaking of incompetent," Hustler-One added. "I think see a familiar face..."

_Shit, he remembers! _Kaze gritted his teeth.

"'Familiar?'" Pyro asked.

"Must be talkin' about Lazy-Eye." Rebel guessed.

"It was on this very spot, two years ago..." the pilot of Nine-Ball said. "I encountered a certain black and red AC and a vengeful young man that was driven to kill me..."

"Huh?" Pyro said. "Black and red AC? Sounds like he's talkin' about-"

Mecha turned and faced Nine-Ball. "I'm that vengeful young man..." Kaze hissed. "I'm the one that you've been looking for!"

Hustler laughed. "Yeah, you're the one alright." Nine-Ball aimed the pulse gun at Mecha. "Thought I killed you off like the rest of 'em!"

"You didn't..." Mecha switched to the missile launcher, aiming for the red AC's cockpit. "and you never will!"

Before he could fire a missile, a beam of red came from behind, nearly grazing Mecha's left shoulder, accurately driving a hole through the barrel of Nine-Ball's pulse gun and severing its right arm from the rest of its metal body.

"What did you do that for?" Kaze asked, turning his glare at Lazy-Eye's AC and its powerful eye-beam cannon - an illegal weapon but a must-have for REDEYE members.

"Kid, you'd die before you fire that missile." Lazy-Eye informed. "He was already pulling the trigger..."

The quick Nine-Ball brought out one of its back weapons, the grenade launcher, and aimed at the now-oblivious Mecha... Not even knowing that he, too, was also oblivious as a rocket blew the barrel of the launcher and sharp sniper bullets pierced its head, destroying the camera that sent the pictures in the cockpit's monitor.

"Nice sniping!" Pyro commented to the sharp-shooting Rebel.

"Same with you!" Rebel called back. "Those rockets must be a real pain!"

"Yeah, but you feel grateful that you have them when you hit a difficult target."

Nine-Ball looked to Dust Devil and Firestorm, then to Mecha and Lazy-Eye's AC. "Damn..." he hissed. "Looks like I'm out numbered!" He then pointed to Mecha with the only hand he had left. "The next we meet, I will not lose!" He turned towards the ruined concrete forest and jetted off...

Mecha replied, giving the red AC the finger. "The next we meet, I'll kill you! Then, I'll finally have my closure!"

Silence then filled the stale air of the city ruins...

"Team, you okay over there?" the voice of Chief called over the radio.

"A little shaken up," Rebel responded. "but we're all here and in one piece."

"Why don't you all head back to base, then. And, Lazy-Eye, you're more than welcome to come along."

"Yeah, might as well..." Lazy-Eye replied. "I've given' y'all too much grief."

**To be continued...**


	11. Reason

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

AN: _Italicized sentences in this chapter (unless said otherwise) are used to tell a story._

Chapter 11: Reason

"So, that's two sightings in a month." Chief muttered. He, along with Kaze, Pyro, Rebel and the woman with short dark blonde hair and a black patch over her right eye: Lazy-Eye, sat around the table in the meeting room, contemplating the mission's performance.

"In the team's case, yes..." Kaze replied sadly.

"Aw, don't feel bad, kid." Lazy-Eye said with a smile and a pat on Kaze's back. "You should be glad! We all made it out alive!"

"I should be... But, he was right there! I had the chance to kill him... yet, I froze at the sight of him... Just like before."

"Well, I'd hate to be a thorn in your side, but he has much more experience than you, while you just got started in the business. What makes you think you can defeat 'em?"

Kaze closed his eyes. "My thirst for revenge." he replied calmly. "It's what drove me to become a Raven, and gave me a new goal in life: to destroy the one that destroyed the ones that I cared about..."

_It was two years ago... I was walking home from school like every other day when the area-wide siren went off. At first I thought there was some sort of error in the security system, then possibly a drill, but when I heard a classmate say, "It's an AC attack!" ...I knew that I had to find shelter and fast... Yet, I was so close to home that I could see it from where I stood and I didn't want my family to worry about me..._

_As I thought about that, the AC that the classmate mentioned appeared... Nine-Ball, expending his payload every which way like the madman he was, and still is. Eventually using his grenade launcher to bore a hole into the complex that I lived in, then used his laser blade to make the entire place collapse to the ground._

_I was in shock. My life was torn apart in a matter of seconds by Nine-Ball. I wanted to do something out of revenge, but I remember my older brother warning me not to pick on someone bigger than me..._

_Then it came... A black and red AC flew from behind me, firing a barrage of bullets at Nine-Ball. Nine-Ball countered. As soon as the new AC got close enough, the red AC dodged and sliced the opposing AC in the back, hard enough to make him drop to its side in defeat._

_The next thing that Nine-Ball did was unthinkable... he walked away. To this day, I'm not sure why he did that, but it was an opportune time to help out the pilot of the black and red AC, who was staggering out the metal beast._

_As I got closer, I found out that the pilot looked familiar... It was my older brother, holding the bloodied wound on his back. I asked if he was all right, but he replied with, "Don't let our father and his horrible intentions get a hold of you..." Then he fell, face forward... I caught him... but it was too late..._

_I didn't cry, though... I was more angry than sad. I set my brother down, said a little prayer, turned looked at the fallen AC and then glared at the retreating Nine-Ball. At that moment, I thought: if that AC is working for Murakumo, then it has no right to live!_

"Wait," Pyro interrupted. "why Murakumo?"

"Murakumo is the corporation that my father works for." Kaze informed. "His 'intention,' as my brother put it, was to have us, along with other employees' sons and daughters, 'participate' in Project H.P."

"Project H.P.? What is it? Sounds interesting!"

"...You need not know about it!" Tsubasa ordered in his calm tone, overhearing the story. "Kaze, please continue..."

_Driven with that purpose in my mind, I hopped into my brother's AC and somehow, with no experience in piloting, managed to stand. I remembered calling to Nine-Ball and ordered him not to run from me. I charged at him, hoping that I would hit 'em in one shot..._

_...But, then I blacked out..._

_The next thing I knew, I was in the hospital, recovering from serious injuries... I was told that six months had past since the attack on B-3 and I was the only survivor... Another month past until I was able to leave the hospital. All of my wounds healed completely, except for this hideous scar I have on my right eye..._

"'Hideous?'" Lazy-Eye asked. "If ya ask me, I find it kinda cute!"

"You're one to talk..." Pyro muttered silently.

"Just because I have an eye-patch," The angry one-eyed pilot muttered back. "doesn't mean I can't hear as well!"

_From there I went straight to the Ravens' Nest where I finished up the rest of my education and began in AC piloting and mechanics... Right up to the day that I took the AC test. And, well, here I am!_

Lazy-Eye was stunned. "Damn, kid!" she blurted. "Never knew you're _that _persistant!"

"Do you still think I'm a fool?" Kaze asked.

"Shoot, no! I sure do hope that you get your revenge back at 'em someday."

"...As well as your father." Tsubasa added. "Your pain must be unbearable..."

"What do you mean?" the curious Kaze asked.

"May I have a word with Kaze in private, Chief?"

"Sure, of course!" Chief said as he, Pyro and Rebel stood up. "I guess this would also be a good time to show Lazy-Eye around."

"Now, hold on a minute!" Laze-Eye objected to Tsubasa. "Y'all shouldn't be keepin' secrets from me! I have a right to know what's goin' on too!"

"You really shouldn't have said that..." Pyro warned.

The cold Tsubasa shot a silent glare at the brash Lazy-Eye.

"Aw, hell," she said as she looked into the blue-eyed stare while pulling off her eye-patch. "two can play at that game!" The eye hidden behind the patch was almost demonic, like looking at the negative of a photo. Where there was white on her left eye, there was black on the right eye; instead of a hazel iris like her left eye, the right eye was blood red. The only part of the seemingly cursed eye that was similar to her normal eye was the black pupil.

...Tsubasa was not impressed, nor did he budge from his spot. Only silently glared at Lazy-Eye, who was now growing uneasy of his scowl.

"All right!" Lazy-Eye said, backing away from Tsubasa. "You win! I'll go..." With that said, she followed the other three pilots for a tour around the base. Not remembering to put the eye-patch back on, Pyro fainted at the sight of her right eye.

Rebel, catching Pyro in her arms, had to ask that burning question: "What the hell is wrong with your eye?"

**To be continued...**


	12. HP

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 12: H.P.

Tsubasa sat down, across from where Kaze sat at the meeting room table. "You know what Project H.P. is, correct?" he asked.

Kaze silently nodded. "What's worse is that I, along with my older brother were witnesses to one such experiment."

"When was that?"

"Two years ago. When our father gave us a tour of Murakumo. The day before B-3 was attacked by Nine-Ball."

"And you refused to be a part of this experiment?"

"Of course. After seeing what sort of hell the patients go through..."

Tsubasa sighed. "You are a smart one... I wished I had the chance to go back and tell my father the same thing..."

Kaze's eyes widened. "You mean... you've undergone the experiment?"

Tsubasa nodded, emotionless. "I cannot believe you did not noticed... The way that I look and the way that I act around others are the side effects that I have endured over the years..."

"I thought that was the way that you _naturally_ looked and acted."

"That is what I let you think... I have not told anyone else at the base about this... You are the first."

"Why are you telling me this, aside from the fact that we're the only ones that know about the H.P. Project?"

Tsubasa took a deep breath. "What I will tell you might shock you... It is about what you said when you were recovering in the hospital..."

Kaze swallowed. "What about it?" he asked with a nervous tone.

"I remember... You came in unconscious and only with _minor _injuries: a few broken bones and a gash along your right eye... It should not have taken you six months to recover from injuries like that..."

Kaze's jaw dropped and he fell silent... He knew where Tsubasa was going with this. "You mean..." he said, fighting back tears. "...That I'm just like you?"

Tsubasa nodded. "And what is worse is that I witnessed you endure hell... Not once... but three times..."

"...And that was without my consent!" Kaze hissed in anger. "Who ordered those experiments? Do you know?"

Tsubasa nodded. "Ryouken Ishikawa. One of Murakumo's top executives and father to oldest son, Hiro and youngest, Kazuma."

"My_ father..._ and don't call me by that name!"

"Sorry..."

Kaze sighed, trying his best not to let this news get to him, when he was hit by an observing question. "If I'm like you, how come I don't _act_ like you?"

"Everyone reacts differently to these experiments... Out of the one-thousand people, including you and me, the most common side effect documented, at twenty-five percent, was loss of feeling emotions, followed by loss of natural hair color... I am considered to be one of the twenty-five percent...

"However, we are among the lucky ones. In uncommon cases, patients that were recovering from the experiment somehow were driven into insanity. And half of them, to such extremes, were executed, either by the help of a task force or by themselves..."

_Maybe ignorance is the key..._ Kaze thought to himself. "But, I still don't get it..."

"What do you not get?"

"I don't feel any different than before all of this had happened..."

Tsubasa folded his arms and closed his eyes. "Then I guess you are just one of the very lucky ones, right?"

"I guess..."

Tsubasa slightly nodded. "I do not know if this has happened to you at any given time, but... have you ever sensed the presence of Nine-Ball?"

"I can't say that I have... Why do you ask?"

"The two encounters of that certain AC that Chief talked about... Before those missions even started, I knew that he was going to appear. A prophecy, if you will."

"If you knew he was going to come during this mission, why didn't you join us?"

"I had to make sure this time... The first time I prophecized this, I did not take it seriously."

Kaze nodded. "Okay... Listen, if you do get one of these 'prophecies' again, could you join the team that Chief sends out? I mean, you're a good pilot... Hell, one of the best!"

"...Of course. That was my plan all along. Besides, I have some unfinished business of my own to take care of, as well..."

"You've had a run-in with Nine-Ball, too?"

Tsubasa got up from his chair. "I am sorry." he said walking to the hallway where the sleeping quarters resided. "I have said too much..."

The silent Kaze got up as well. But instead of going to his room, he walked over to the garage where his AC, Mecha, stood on the platform, awating the next mission.

_The Human Plus Project..._ he thought, looking into the AC's eyes. _Next generation of humankind? Yeah, right. Just forced to be gifted. To be better than everyone else! _He hung his head sadly. _I didn't even know it, bro. I'm sorry for not keeping our promise about that..._ He looked up at Mecha again. _As for Nine-Ball..._

"We'll get 'em..." Kaze said. "We'll get 'em next time, bro... I promise!"

**To be continued...**


	13. Mobius

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters (now including: "Senior"). Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 13: Mobius

"Sora!" a friendly voice of a Murakumo executive called as he entered the massive MT and AC garage.

"Good evening, Senior." Sora replied, as always, in his monotone voice and not making eye contact with the executive. "I take it that you are the new executive that is overlooking Project Mobius?"

"That's right." Senior replied. "I came to see if you're still working on the AC design..." He turned to see what Sora was looking at. "but it looks like you're already done! That was quick!"

"Thank you, Senior."

Amongst the many reverse-jointed and close-combat MT's within Murakumo's garage, stood Mobius: a blue and black lightweight bi-pedal AC, armed with a heavy arsenal of a large laser cannon, a small laser cannon, a formidable laser blade and an energy sniper rifle.

"I think you overdid it..." Senior informed. "All of that weaponry for one wimpy AC?"

Sora shot a cold glare at Senior.

"N-not your AC, I mean..." he quickly corrected. "The target and his wimpy AC..."

"Do not judge a book by it's cover, Senior." Sora quoted, looking back at Mobius. "So is the same for AC's. If the AC and the pilot, that I had been informed about, are truly talented enough to rival my skill, then I shall leave no room for error, and no chance for him to return fire."

"I see..." Senior then looked over to the two generally-identical AC's on Mobius' right (their left). "What should I do about unit zero and unit one?"

"Nothing, Senior." Sora replied. "As of now, nothing. However, inform the pilot of unit zero that he will be on stand-by, just in case something happens between now and when I go on my mission."

"Just a sec..." Senior pulled out a cell-phone, that doubled as a two-way radio, and pushed a small button. "Guardian, please come in." he said into the cell-phone.

Silence.

"...Yes, sir?" the weak voice on the other end of the line said.

"You're on stand-by for a couple days. Remember, you may be needed at any time. Is that all right?"

More silence.

"...Yes, sir..." the weak voice replied.

Senior sighed as he put the cell away. "I don't get why you're putting your faith in him." he said to Sora. "He's still recovering from-"

"I know, Senior." Sora interrupted. "I know of the condition that Guardian is in. However, if I was to order unit one to be on stand-by, I would only sound desperate. Relying on one such as him may cost dearly... Who knows how many innocent lives he will take as soon as the battle begins?"

"...I suppose you're right. Sorry about that."

"It is all right, Senior."

"Well, I'm going to go and have myself some dinner before I head home." Senior informed as he began to walk back to the main office building. "You're welcome to come along if you want."

"No, thank you, Senior." Sora replied politely. "I must go and find an escort that will take me to the mission point tomorrow."

"All right, then. Just remember that the kitchen is always open..."

Sora didn't care. He was standing before the three most powerful AC's man has ever created. Besides, he never felt hungry...

"Hopefully tomorrow will be the day that I find the one that dares challenges Murakumo." he muttered to the lifeless Mobius. He then heard a beeping noise coming from Mobius' cockpit. He closed his eyes and let out a small sigh. "It would seem that I am needed sooner than expected..."

**To be continued...**


	14. Nomad

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 14: Nomad

_BOOM!_

Kaze, slowly shaking off a deep slumber, weakly opened his eyes and scanned his room from the comfort of his bed. _...Just dreaming... _he thought as he fell back asleep.

_BOOM!_

He quickly jumped out of bed and frantically put a new set of clothes on. _Not dreaming... Not dreaming... _he thought as he tied the shoelaces on his boots before running out the door.

"Kaze, you hear that, too?" a voice asked as he entered the hallway. It was Lazy-Eye, equally shocked by the loud noises that the two had heard.

"Yeah, I'm sure you can hear it all throughout the ba-" Kaze stopped as soon as he saw that Lazy-Eye didn't put her eye patch on. "what the hell is wrong with your eye?"

"Long story short?" she asked as she pulled out the patch and covered her demonic-like eye. "Freak accident. A friend of mine made an artificial eye for me. It works just as fine as my old eye, but I gotta cover it so no one gets spooked and passes out..."

_BOOM!_

"Talk later, 'kay?" Kaze said as he made a head start down the hallway.

"Wait!" Lazy-Eye called as Kaze stepped forward, then did a quick one-eighty on one foot.

"What?" he asked.

She pointed at his bare hands. "You forgot your gloves..."

Kaze pointed back at Lazy's hands. "So did you..."

They both gave a quick glance at their hands before uttering a simultaneous "Dammit!" Quickly, they ran back to their rooms, retrieved their gloves and ran out to the meeting room.

...No one... When the two arrived at the meeting room, there was no one else around. Not even Tsubasa was sitting in his usual spot, reading his book.

_Everyone's gone... _Kaze thought to himself as the two ran to the AC garage.

The eight AC's, now including Lazy-Eye's AC: Sinner, had not budged from their seperate platforms since the end of yesterday's mission.

_The AC's are still here._ Kaze thought. _The rest of the team must be around here somewhere..._

"You poor thing..." Lazy-Eye said, gazing at Sinner with a tear in her eye. "Look at what they've done to you..."

"Your AC looks fine..." a confused Kaze noted. "There's nothing wrong with it."

"If ya look real close, ya can see that the eye-beam cannon is gone..."

Kaze looked carefully at the red eye of the AC.

"...As well as the vulcan cannons above it; the hidden shoulder-mounted mini-missile launcher; the right arm laser blade; the hidden leg-mounted missile launcher..."

"I guess that's the down side of switching over to our team..." Kaze noted. "Getting rid of illegal weaponry."

"Yeah... It's possibly for the best..."

"Hey!" the voice of Pyro called from a balcony above the two. "What are you guys doing down there?"

"Looking for everybody." Kaze replied. "What are you doing up there?"

"Enjoying the view!"

"The view of what?" Lazy-Eye asked. "The city?"

"No, the fields!"

The two pilots fell into confusion. Stunned looks sculpted their faces.

"When did Isaac City get fields?" Kaze asked.

Pyro rose one of his thin eyebrows. "I guess Chief didn't tell you..." he turned and looked behind him. "Hey, Chief. You forgot to tell Kaze and Laze-Eye that this is a _moving _base!"

"A what?" Lazy-Eye asked.

Chief appeared from the balcony and looked down at the confused pilots. "Ah, good morning!" he said with a friendly wave. "Well, come on up. We got another mission to tackle, and this one looks pretty urgent."

After a climb up a couple flights of stairs, Kaze and Lazy-Eye finally met up with the entire team in what appeared to be the control center of a giant spaceship.

"Sorry for not tellin' you guys earilier..." Chief said. "This base was once a giant land crusier that barely survived the Great Destruction. I found it while I was on recon, many years back, and decided to remodel it to what it is today - the Nomad: part-hovercraft and part-catapillar moving base. Nice, huh?"

Kaze nodded, looking out towards the fields, painted by the early morning sun. "It's very nice." he commented.

It was Kaze's second time going to the above-ground world. The first time was two years ago, when he and his brother were given a tour around Murakumo HQ by their father...

"We should be at the mission point very soon, sir." Bug announced, looking at the Nomad's radar.

"Good." Chief said with a nod. "Then, I should tell you guys about this mission and what we're up against." He cleared his throat. "We're going to a Chrome base that's fifty kilometers north of Isaac City. They sent out a distress signal early this morning saying that they're under attack by an AC, the likes of which they have never seen.

"Chrome is willing to pay us thirty-thousand Credits for the removal of this AC, more if the AC has reinforcements coming."

"Have you decided on the pilots who would be best suited for this mission?" Tsubasa asked.

"Of course! Three AC's are going to come with me: Silent Blade, Mecha and Sinner. Is that all right with you three?"

"Yes, sir!" Kaze and Lazy-Eye replied with a salute.

"Would I ever say 'no,' sir?" Tsubasa asked.

"As for the rest of you," Chief added, looking at Rebel, Pyro, Bug and Hyper. "if things go wrong, I want you guys to come in and help us out, okay?"

"You got it!" Bug replied with a salute.

"We'll be ready!" Hyper added.

Chief nodded. "All right. Team, let's move out!"

**To be continued...**


	15. Launch

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 15: Launch

_Could it be him? _Kaze thought as he started up Mecha. _Could that AC be Nine-Ball?_

"All right, Kaze." Pyro's voice called over the radio. "How about a status report."

"AP and energy are full." Kaze replied as he strapped the harness on. "All weapons are loaded and all systems are green. Do you copy?"

"I do copy. Sit tight, and wait for Chief's orders."

"Roger."

"Team, listen up." Chief called from his AC, Fortress, that stood upon the rooftop. "Since I'm the slowest AC, I'll take the catapult to as close as I can get to the mission point. The rest of you can take the V-Launcher."

"The V-Launcher?" Kaze asked.

"The V-Launcher is a vertical catapult." Tsubasa informed. "The AC elevators that we are standing on also work as a catapult, in case of an emergency like this one."

"Impressive." Lazy-Eye commented.

"Yeah, this base is full of surprises." Kaze added.

"Are you ready up there, Chief?" Rebel called.

"Ready whenever you are!" Chief replied. "Team, we all leave when the light turns green... Red..."

Kaze relaxed his grip on the controls as he realized something. _An AC the likes of which they've never seen..._ he thought.

"Yellow..." Chief continued.

_I guess it's not Nine-Ball then..._

"Green!"

For a split second, gravity was reversed and Mecha, along with Sinner and Silent Blade, were shot out of the vertical catapult like fireworks.

Right before Kaze's decent back to Earth, he could almost hear Pyro saying, "You forgot to scream again..."

Simultaneously, the three AC's made their two-point landing on the soft ground and began to scan the hilly area for Chief's whereabouts.

"Everyone okay over there?" Chief's voice came over the radio.

"A little shaky from the launch," Kaze replied. "but I'm okay."

"I am fine, Chief." Tsubasa replied. "There is no need to be worried..."

"YEEEEEHAAAAA!" Lazy-Eye cheered. "That was fun! Let's do that again!"

"Maybe later." Chief replied. "Let's focus on the mission. Right now, you three are behind me by about fifty-five meters and the base is about a hundred meters ahead of me. Think you guys can fly past me? Don't worry, I'll support you from behind."

"Roger..." Tsubasa replied. "Team, move out."

Silent Blade began to lead with a boost dash, while Mecha and Sinner followed close by, quickly advancing to the nearly destroyed Chrome military base...

**To be continued...**

T.R.: (blushing in embarassment) Okay, sorry about this chapter being so action-less. I promise you the next chapter will have action!


	16. Raid

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 16: Raid

At the Chrome base, the conflict continued to ensue between the corporation's defense squad and the mysterious blue and black AC. Now into its third hour, the battle was still on the side of the one relentless machine.

"Fire everything you got at that AC!" a Chrome commander barked to the gunman firing blindly at the fast moving mech. "Don't give up until the last bullet has been spent!"

The machine gun clicked, making an echo inside the pillbox where they were stationed.

"Sir, the last bullet has been spent!" the gunman called back.

"Commander," another soldier called, listening to a comm-device. "I just got word that the entire air-strike battalion has been destroyed! And our MT weaponry is not even scratching the armor..." As he said that, the last unit of the MT infantry was sliced in two by the AC's laser blade.

"What do we do now, sir?" the gunman asked.

The commander wasn't listening. "I guess... this is the Mobius that I heard about." he hissed. "Kenji, you bastard! You think that you can possibly take out an entire corporation with an AC like _that_?" He pulled out the handgun from the holster underneath his jacket and began to fire at the metal monster.

One bullet did manage to hit the AC. Mobius' first hit. It turned and glared at the pillbox. The pilot zoomed in and locked on to the trigger-happy soldier.

"'It's just some weakling encased in pigiron...'" the pilot muttered, reading the commander's lips. "'...The damn AC will become his casket...'" He smiled slightly at the fact that the commander was wrong. He commanded the AC to raise its right arm and take aim at the frantic soldier... and fired... leaving three dead soldiers and a medium-sized bullet hole in the back wall of the pillbox.

"Those that defy the expectations of Murakumo, must be punished for their actions..." the pilot noted, ceasing his smile. "That is what I believe..."

A high-pitched beep informed the pilot of incoming units.

"Three AC's..." he said, looking at the radar. "No, four... One is moving slower than the others... A caterpillar, no less... As for the other three, judging by their speed... bi-pedal, middleweight-class." He smiled again, but a little wider this time. "This will be interesting..."

**To be continued...**

T.R.: ...And I'm sorry that this chapter is short... But at least I'm building up suspense! XD Until the next chapter is up... review!


	17. Search

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 17: Search

The three bi-pedal AC's walked through the military base in shock. Hangars and bunkers blown away, pavement scorched by explosions, scraps of MT's and aircraft littering the base like confetti -- as though it was welcoming the TALON pilots to hell.

"Damn..." Lazy-Eye blurted. "Looks like we just missed the battle... I don't see any signs of life on my radar..."

Kaze checked his radar as well. "Same here." he noted.

"In any case, be on your guard..." Tsubasa informed. "The AC knew that we were coming. It is possibly hiding from us and preparing for an ambush."

"So, what do we do now?" Kaze asked.

"We will split up." Silent Blade pointed the Karasawa out to the ravaged road in front of the three. "I will take the north road and investigate that area." The silver AC turned to the black and red AC. "Kaze, take Mecha through the western road." Silent Blade did a one-eighty, now looking at the black, gold and silver AC. "Lazy-Eye, take Sinner through the eastern road. We will meet back at this point in about two minutes, all right?"

Mecha and Sinner nodded.

Tsubasa nodded back. "...Move out."

The three AC's turned and walked through their designated areas.

"Chief, what is your current position?" Tsubasa asked as he glared at all of the fallen MT's along a runway.

"I'm on a nearby hill," Chief replied. "it's high enough to show me a bird's eye view of the base."

"Do you see anything unusual on your visual?"

Chief looked carefully at every building, ruined or not. "I see nothing."

"What about your radar?"

"Hell, I'll get nothing on that! That's why I'm up here!"

"Ah, yes, I remember now. Please forgive me for being so forgetful."

"Um..." A confused Chief uttered. "Okay... You're forgiven."

Meanwhile, Sinner zigzagged between the broken rubble for signs of an AC. _Hmmm... _Lazy-Eye thought, looking at what appeared to be a laser blade gash along the side of a hangar door. _If we don't find this AC... does that mean we still get paid?_

Kaze, on the other hand, was thinking of a different outcome. _I know you're here..._ he thought as Mecha walked over a small man-made crater.

The AC stopped. A dead end. To its right, a beaten hangar that once housed a few MT's. It's left, a freshly made scrap pile, no taller than itself. And ahead, a tall concrete barrier.

Kaze took a deep breath. _Quit it, Kaze. _he thought. _You're just overreacting..._

An odd sound broke the silence. _Noise? Moving? To my left!_

Mecha quickly turned and aimed the machine gun directly at the scrap pile...

...as a piece of metal slid from the middle of the pile to the ground.

The pilot sighed, shaking off the small and unnecessary adrenaline boost. _Nothing to worry about... just a scrap pile..._ Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a red light flashing next to the compass: LOCKED ON.

An explosion came from the roof of the run-down hangar behind Mecha and out jumped a thin AC with its laser blade drawn...

**To be continued...**

T.R.: OOH! The suspense must be killing you! (not literally, of course...) Yay! Big battle coming up! Until then, review:)


	18. Encounter

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 18: Encounter

Accurately aiming the gold-colored laser blade at Mecha's core, the blue and black AC dove towards it target.

Mecha swiftly turned to face its challenger and drew its laser blade out in front its face.

Electricity sparked and sang its static-like song as the two blades collided. Each pilot hoping that their blade would slice through their opponent's blade, and then some.

The two AC's made sharp eye-contact with one another. Delving into their rival's computer generated mind, attempting to find all the information that they need.

"AC identification unknown." Mecha's AI voice informed Kaze.

"It's him..." Kaze hissed, his left hand holding tightly to the left controller. "It has to be..."

"AC identification verified as Mecha." Mobius' AI voice noted. "Pilot identified as Kaze."

Sora looked directly into Mecha's eyes. "...I found you."

Kaze took hold of the right controller and commanded the AC to aim the machine gun at Mobius' core.

Sora quickly saw this sneaky move and countered by bringing Mobius' left leg up and driving it to Mecha's right side.

The black and red AC went airborne, crashing into the wall a few seconds later, leaving a spider-web pattern of small cracks chiseled into the barrier.

"Dammit!" Kaze hissed, maneuvering Mecha to stand up again. "He's good."

"Kaze, are you okay over there?" the voice of Chief asked over the radio.

"A few dents in the armor, but I'm all right." he replied as he looked for the stealthy AC.

"Well, sit tight, kid. I got a lock on the bastard... _fire!_"

Two missiles jettisoned from AC on the top of a hill and flew towards Mobius as it ran along the outside of the base perimeter.

"...Pathetic..." Sora muttered, looking at the missile on his radar.

Mobius made a small jump in the air then activated it boosters to make itself hover a few meters off the ground. It turned around and locked on to the incoming missiles and fire the anti-missile lasers from its core, exterminating the hissing pests before they got closer to hitting it.

"You lucky son of a..." Chief cursed, slamming an open palm at the monitor as though it was the screen's fault.

Silent Blade glided along the runway and appeared behind the backwards gliding Mobius for a counterattack.

The quick AC spun around and drew its yellow blade only to be blocked by a powerful blade, glowing in a wondrous blue.

"Tsubasa..." Sora muttered. "I did not expect to see you again..."

"I see that you are finally piloting an AC..." Tsubasa replied. "Is Murakumo getting desperate to gain the upper hand in this war?"

"No... Only changing its strategy..." Mobius parried the Moonlight blade away, shoving the silver and black AC back a few meters.

Silent Blade retracted the blade and aimed the Karasawa at Mobius, who was already aiming the energy sniper rifle at him.

"Do not bother with such a obsolete model." Sora teased. "It only makes burn marks on armor. This rifle can drill a hole through an AC's core with perfect accuracy!"

Tsubasa had to admit it, Sora was right. Though the Karasawa model has a strength of one-thousand five-hundred fifty and is deemed an instant legend by those that have seen or used that weapon, it only pales in comparison to the energy sniper rifle and its strength of three-thousand eight-hundred. However, only skilled marksmen, ace pilots or one in the same can safely use this low ammo model.

Off the corner of Tsubasa's eye, he saw two AC's flying over the barrier with machine and hand guns drawn and aimed at Mobius...

**To be continued...**

T.R.: This battle isn't over yet, it just seemed like a good place to stop. Anywho, go and review, peoples:D


	19. Success

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 19: Success

The two flying AC's took aim at the heedless Mobius, waiting for the green lock to turn red.

"Fire!" ordered Kaze as he and Lazy-Eye unleashed a barrage of bullets onto the AC's back, causing its boosters to explode.

Jolted by the shock of the blast, Sora pulled the trigger of the rifle, sending a thin, but lethal, beam of energy towards Silent Blade.

The monochromatic AC kept calm and stood in the same place as the beam flew over its left shoulder... unscathed.

A second of silence passed... yet it seemed like a whole day passed.

"...You missed." Tsubasa noted, drawing his blade. He charged towards the stunned Mobius and threw a slash.

Mobius quickly avoided the blade by jumping over Silent Blade, like a it was a hurdle, and dashed to the runway.

"...Coward." Tsubasa muttered under his breath. "Chief?"

"Yeah, yeah," Chief replied. "I know the drill..." He aimed the grenade cannons at the running mech. "Let's see ya try and run from _this_!" he said as he pulled the trigger.

Before Mobius could reach the other end of the runway and escape the mission area, a massive ball of fire shoved the retreating AC into the remains of a control tower.

_...I ...lost? _thought Sora as thick black smoke began to collect inside the cockpit.

The silver and black AC glided over to Mobius, resting on its side. Its entire body charred from the grenade blast. "If you are still alive in there," Tsubasa ordered, aiming the Karasawa at the still Mobius. "come out and surrender."

The cockpit door of the damaged AC shuttered but opened slowly, exhaling a plume of black smoke. The pilot staggered and slithered out of the cockpit, collapsing at the moment his entire body touched the concrete.

He was no older and no taller than Kaze, dressed in a gray uniform, similar to Tsubasa's. Short, pitch black hair partially covered his closed eyes and his pale-colored face. Sleeping as though he was a young child, oblivious to the dire scenes and the hellish symphony of battle.

Tsubasa continued to aim the laser rifle at the unconscious Sora, thinking of the times before he came to TALON, working alongside this person he once considered to be his friend. _How did it come to this...?_ he thought.

He closed his eyes and heard that scream... The scream that he let out five years ago, right before he was put under for his first experiment. An experiment that he never asked for at the last minute, but his parents still insisted...

His emotionless self couldn't even shutter at that ear splitting sound. _...Mother ...Father ...Why? _he heard that young voice cry.

He withdrew the rifle, turned and walked away from Sora. "...Chief ...Kaze ...Lazy-Eye." he called. "The mission is over. Let us return home..."

"Roger." Chief replied.

"I copy." Lazy-Eye replied.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Kaze blurted, as Mecha flew over and walked alongside Silent Blade. "What just happened?"

"I spared his life..." Tsubasa replied. "Normally, I would kill the pilot and be done with it..."

Kaze fell into a stern silence as he and the rest of the team headed back to the Nomad.

...Leaving the half-conscious Sora behind. "...Tsubasa." he weakly hissed. "...You traitor."

**To be continued...**

T.R.: I write too much for my own good! But, at least I'm making my readers happy! You can go on now and review and I'll still be here... writing away...


	20. Defeat

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 20: Defeat

"...Traitor..." Sora hissed again as he opened his eyes, scanning the small, but cozy, first-class of a private jet.

"I see that you're finally up!" a familiar voice said to him.

Sora looked over and saw the smiling executive across from him. "Senior?" he asked.

Senior nodded back. "We were worried about you."

Sora looked away, gazing out to the AC transport next to them, gliding in the sky. "...I failed you, sir..." he muttered.

"What?" Senior asked.

The pilot looked back. "...I said that I have failed my mission, sir."

The executive smiled back. To Sora, it was a pathetic looking smirk.

"Don't worry about it!" Senior said. "You can always live to fight another day, right?"

Sora glared at the executive. "...I lost to four AC's!" he hissed, ignoring Senior's question. "One, of which, looking identical to unit zero!"

"You mean-" Senior asked, halted by a nod from the cold pilot.

"What was more interesting was that I found an AC pilot that we both remember from long ago."

"Who?"

"You remember Tsubasa Arashi, do you not?"

Senior nodded. "Of course!" he said. "But, I thought he died when Nine-Ball ambushed him."

"Apparently not... He escaped death and joined a Raven team."

"Well, which team is it? REDEYE? The 18th A.C.T.? Four Blades of Hell? Titans of the Ancient Days?"

"TALON..."

Senior fell into shock, then into a fit of laughter. "He joined that sorry excuse for a team?" he asked. "And you lost to _them_?"

Sora quickly took hold of Senior's neck. "You will keep that between the two of us, correct?"

The executive parried the hold off his neck. "You needn't worry." he said, his laughing fit set aside. "But I must inform the boss of this matter. I'm sorry, but you have no objection to that."

The pilot calmly sat back down in his seat. "As long as you tell those higher, but not lower, than you."

"You have my word."

The jet carrying the two passengers fell silent for a minute.

"Do you have a status report on Mobius?" A quiet Sora asked, looking out to the transport.

"I've been told that most of the outer layer of the armor was burnt to a crisp." Senior informed. "That'll be replaced by a prototype alloy the guys over R and D had been making for a while. As for the interior, it sustained some smoke damage but it's nothing that the mechanics can fix!"

"Do you know how long it will take for its repairs to be completed?"

The executive scratched his head. "I'd say... about two weeks, give or take a week on which base we send it to..."

"...I see."

More silence fell between the two.

"There was one more thing I forgot to tell you about that mission..." Sora muttered.

"And what's that?"

"The one that defies Murakumo... His name is Kaze. But his full name is Kazuma Ishikawa."

Senior sighed. "Why am I not surprised?"

"Senior, should we put him under the list of traitors?"

"You mean like a hit list? Of course! ...And, Sora, one more thing."

"What is that?"

"Quit calling me 'Senior,' will ya? You make me sound like I'm old!"

"Then, what am I to call you by, sir?"

The executive smiled while the jet and the transport landed at a Murakumo base. "Ryouken is fine."

**To be continued...**


	21. Stargazing

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

AN:_ Italicized sentences in this chapter (unless said otherwise) are used to tell a story._

Chapter 21: Stargazing

Night fell upon the quiet plains where the crew of the Nomad decided to camp out until the next morning.

There sitting on the edge of the rooftop was Tsubasa, looking to the serene starry sky.

A distant sound came from behind him. The squeaky door being opened and footsteps hitting each rung of the ladder, stopping after they hit the hollow metal of the roof.

"...You found me." Tsubasa said calmly, eyes still fixed on the stratosphere.

"I only guessed." the voice of Kaze replied. "I came to give you a message."

Tsubasa turned to Kaze. "Let me guess... It is from Pyro and he said that I should have used the Karasawa in battle today."

The messenger's eyes widened. "H-how did you know?"

"It is the same message that he gives to me after every mission I go on... My response is, as always: if the light of the moon falls, the Karasawa will carry on. However, if the Karasawa fails, then so shall I..."

"Poetic..." Kaze commented. "So, why are you up here?"

"When a mission is an above-ground one, like today, I come out here on a clear night and look at the stars..."

"What for?" said the young pilot as he walked over and joined in glancing at the darkness of space.

"I want to know... what it is like to have feelings again..."

Kaze closed his eyes. "That's right... The Human-Plus experiments took that right away from you..."

"Correct." Tsubasa replied. _If you had met me five years ago, you would have known that I was a friendly person to be around with, not bearing a grudge to anyone. For having that personality, I became the president of my homeroom class during my high school years. Though, I have to admit I was shy at times._

_On the day of my graduation, my parents, both working for Murakumo, invited me to be a part of a 'survey,' as they put it, 'that will revolutionize the way that I live and breathe.' Knowing that they will not take 'no' as an answer (especially, my stubborn father who brought it up in the first place), I agreed to go along._

_When we reached the place that the corporation was holding these 'surveys,' I realized that my parents had lied to me. It was there that they told me the truth, that the scientists were performing experiments on adolescents in hopes of finding out if the body of a test subject, contained with millions of nanomachines, could exceed what a normal person's body could do._

"Project H.P." Kaze noted in a hiss.

Tsubasanodded. _I even watched as some of the classmates from my homeroom being put under. One of them even looked at me before he passed out, as though it was my fault._

_I panicked. I told my parents that I did not want to be a part of this. They said I had 'no other choice.' As they said that, two scientists took me away... I can still hear myself screaming in terror over this. As much I know, that was my last time I ever felt an emotion..._

"I'm curious. What's it like to not have emotions?" Kaze asked.

Cold, blue eyes looked to the inquisitive pilot. "...I usually put it as the fact that you are half-way dead. Or, put in a spiritual manner, your soul has left your body, yet your heart still continues to beat."

Kaze sighed, unsure of how to reply to that.

_I came to about three days later, in a hospital room with nine other people, being told by an executive that we were under their control._

_From there, we were forced to begin training to become powerful AC pilots in hopes that Murakumo will gain the upper hand in the war that was, at that time, a stalemate. When one pilot fell behind in meeting the executives' expectations, they were given another H.P. experiment. For me, I fell behind twice. But I could not retaliate. Aside from the fact that I am an emotionless being, I was told that falling behind was only fate and that the H.P. experiment would change my fate's course._

"Did you fall behind on purpose?" Kaze asked.

"I did not want to. The only way that you would fall behind is that you lost to your opponent in a battle against an equally 'gifted' pilot-trainee. However, if you won the battle, you would move to another team and battle against them."

"That's sounds like the way an arena works."

"True, but Murakumo had complex rules for the multi-team arena that even made the executives confused."

_...Having defeated every pilot-trainee months later, I graduated and became an elite AC pilot serving Murakumo. Around that time, I came up with a theory that if I escaped from the strings that the corporation held me by, I would get my emotions back... A foolish theory as I found out later when I was caught. My punishment? Another experiment._

"I'm sorry, Tsubasa," Kaze apologized. "but I must admit... your life sucks!"

"I knew that you would agree with me..."

"And it sounds like this whole thing went by really fast."

Tsubasa shook his head. "No, the training was over the course of three years..."

_Persistent with my plan, I escaped once more, this time, escaping for good... That is until I an AC began pursuing me: Nine-Ball... I fought valiantly, but he was still far more powerful than me. For that, I was left for dead..._

_And I would have died, had it not been for Chief finding me out in the middle of nowhere and giving me a new life as a Raven._

"Well, at least your life story is going along a happy note now..." Kaze noted.

Tsubasa nodded back, rubbing the back of his head. "True," he said. "but the memories still remain... And I have yet to accomplish my goals of gaining my emotions back... and of defeating Nine-Ball."

Kaze smiled. "I guess I'm not alone."

"You will let me have the first attack, will you not?"

"I won't be competitive and say that my grudge is stronger than yours. But your grudge wins by age."

"Thank you. Do not worry about me finishing him off, I will leave that job in your hands."

Kaze looked further into the star-filled sky. "You're too kind."

**To be continued...**

T.R.: You know what to do, all of you readers in fanfic world: (pose: points at nothing but sky) go now and review! ...Um, (bows) please.


	22. Council

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 22: Council

Behind the closed doors of Murakumo's meeting room sat the three top executives, a quiet AC pilot and a president that governed them all.

"It has come to my attention," the president, Kenji Kabuto announced, the light of the moon behind him casting a shadow on his face. "that Sora here succeeded in finding two rebel pilots of the Human Plus project."

"...But has failed in sanctioning or capturing them, so I hear." the executive in the red suit and matching glasses added, looking to the pilot.

"You need not rub it in!" Sora barked, glaring back at the executive.

"President Kabuto," the red-suited executive continued, ignoring the pilot's protest. "I think it would be wise to send me and Ten out and exterminate these pests."

"You're not gonna turn another city into a slaughterhouse, are you?" Ryouken asked.

"The Zam City Massacre," as it had been dubbed by the media, was the most brutal battle fought in the corporation war, with death-tolls of both soldiers and civilians in the thousands. It was an unexpected clash between large MT and AC squads from Chrome and Murakumo, lasting two days and dragging along ten sectors of the once peaceful city.

At the end of the second day, as it was told by President Kabuto, two AC's stood tall against Chrome's weakened force and took victory for Murakumo. The pilots being the infamous Goku Brothers: two Ravens that hold alliances between Murakumo and REDEYE.

The eldest (and very brash) brother, Ji Goku (known as Kazan among the Ravens), pilots a heavyweight bi-pedal AC (rumored to have walked in a pool of lava that was, in an AC's case, waist-high, and survived), named Fire.

The youngest (and very calm and polite) brother, Ten Goku (Hyozan to the Ravens), pilots a lightweight bi-pedal AC (said to have placed a sector of Zam City under a bitter and unexpected winter), named Ice.

"We have learned from our mistakes..." muttered the blue-suited Ten. "Another atrocity will not arise by our actions."

"You seem quite optimistic about that, brother." Ji noted in a whisper.

"Your request has come too late, Ji." President Kabuto said. "I already accepted Sora's request to send in Guardian and his AC, Avenger, to take the matter into his hands."

"Another Plus pilot..." Ji grumbled, folding his arms. "Sir, if I must say, you're relying too heavily on those freaks!"

"I would watch your tongue if I was you, executive." ordered Sora. "Mind you, you are speaking before one of those so-called 'freaks!'"

Ji stared at the pilot through the red-tinted glass in silent disgust.

"President Kabuto," called Ten. "do you believe that Guardian can overwhelm these fools, if not, have them be humiliated once more?"

"Of course." Kabuto replied. "I'm sure Sora could tell you of the many great battles he fought against him in the simulation."

"And I bet he failed every time!" Ji added.

"Ji, you're talking out of line." Ryouken barked. "If you wish to speak ill of Sora and the other Plus pilots, I would suggest you'd do it outside of these walls!"

"It's true what the Prez says." a mysterious voice noted from the intercom. "Guardian is one hell of a powerful pilot. Even I faced 'em a number of times before... Though I still came out victorious by a hair."

"Hustler One." Kabuto identified the voice. "So nice of you to join us."

"My pleasure."

"To even hear your voice is an honor, sir!" commented Ji.

"What brings you to this meeting, Hustler One?" asked Ten.

"Aw, y'know, just givin' off my two cents of this, that and everything in-between."

"I heard recently that you have encountered a pilot by the name of Kaze, correct?" Sora asked.

"Yeah, that kid had the fighting abilities of a rock! Nothin' like that time I faced 'em two years back. Seemed pretty pissed when he came chargin' at me in that torn-up AC..."

"What can you say?" asked Ryouken. "You took every last bit of his will to live away!"

"Humph... So? I get that a lot! The next thing they know, I've taken their own life away!"

"Harsh words coming from the Arena's top pilot." Ten noted.

Ji nodded in agreement. "True, brother. Now, when will we see this pilot in person? I want to know the face that caused the Isaac City Raid and the extermination of the Sharpshooters, the once-elite AC team."

"Possibly never." Hustler One replied. "I am a busy man, and I don't have time to stop and smell the roses with insignificant people!" On that note, he hung up.

"And I was just going to invite him to go on the mission with Guardian." Ryouken silently whimpered.

"Guardian will do just fine on his own." Sora informed. "Please, trust me on this, Senior."

The executive paused. "All right. I trust you... And stop calling me 'Senior!'"

**To be continued...**

T.R.: The Council has spoken... Wait, wrong show... Well, go and review this semi-_peaceful _chapter... Sorry, folks... XP


	23. Morning

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 23: Morning

The sun made a slow and steady rise over the horizon, peeking over the mountains and shining down on the black massive tank that was the Nomad...

And right into sleeping Kaze's eyes from his room's only window. He opened his eyes half-way and looked at the clock.

_Seven-twenty-five in the morning... _he thought as he wrapped the blanket around him and closed his eyes. _I don't need to be up this early!_

A few minutes passed until Kaze realized that he was up for the day. He sighed and sat up, wishing he had five more minutes of sleep. His eyes glanced around the empty room, stopping at the heavy looking duffel bag. _I've been so busy with these missions the past couple of days that I haven't even unpacked!_ his mind nagged.

He stood up from the warm bed, walked over and started unpacking his duffel bag. Setting at the very top of the clothes and the worn-out notebooks, from the AC piloting and mechanics classes, was a small and slightly damaged picture of Kaze's family, taken a few months before the attack and salvaged from the rubble of the ruined apartment complex. It showed only him, his mother and his older brother. A torn edge marked where his father used to be in the picture.

Examining the picture brought the agonizing memories back in full force... (**1**)

_A small cloud of fire and smoke exploded from the gash on the back of the black and red AC, wounded by Nine-Ball's blade. It dropped to its knees in defeat and slowly leaned to its right, stretching out its arm to the lone bystander in the school uniform as though it wanted him to help out._

_Kazuma felt like a statue. Couldn't move... couldn't breathe... couldn't even fathom how or why this onslaught had erupted by the famed Raven of the arena._

_Another small earthquake was made when the AC fell on its side, making Kazuma snap out of his shock._

_Nine-Ball looked down at the fallen mech in disgrace, then up to Kazuma with a soul-piercing glare. Quickly shunning them both, he took his leave down a silent road, crushing a few cars underneath his feet along the way._

_The cockpit door of the black and red AC flew open. A hand appeared, grabbing the door's edge. Then another hand, struggling, but doing the same action._

_Kazuma forced his feet to move towards the wrecked metal monster, not even considering the dangers of explosions, collapses of other buildings and other cataclysmic situations along that line. He had a strange feeling that he had to help this pilot out, whoever he or she was..._

_The pilot slithered the rest of his body out of the cockpit and attempted to stand, but only got to his knees with the horrendous pain in his back weighing him down._

_"Hiro!" the pilot heard a familiar voice call out. He looked with weak eyes to his school-uniform-clad younger brother, running towards him._

_"K-Kazuma?" the pilot asked, gritting his teeth in pain while blocking the flow of blood exiting his back with one hand._

_"Yeah, it's me, brother..." He knelt down alongside Hiro. "Are you all right? Let me see that wound-"_

_"No!" Hiro whimpered as he shook his head, tears rolling down his face. "It's all right, bro. Really..."_

_"No, it's not..." Kazuma retorted as he joined in the sorrowful song after seeing the unsightly gash running along his brother's spine. The very tip of Nine-Ball's laserblade was able to cut right through the flesh and muscle to reveal the clean vertebrate, slightly scratched and chipped from the blade "We need to get to a hospital now!"_

_"Kazuma, listen to me... You have to be strong now... I'm not going to be around anymore to help you..."_

_"Don't say that! ...Please..."_

_Hiro gave a weak smile. "C'mon, stop crying, will ya? I'm still here, aren't I? The last thing that I want to see is you cryin'!"_

_Kazuma sniffed away the last few tears._

_"Do me a big favor, Kazuma... okay?"_

_Kazuma nodded._

_"...Don't let your father and his horrible intentions get a hold of you..."_

_"My father?" Kazuma asked. "He's your father, too!"_

_"I disown him!" Hiro weakly hissed. "He's nothing to me after what he said to us yesterday! Being a part of that damn experiment is something that I will not do! ...You should do the same! You were there! You saw what happened to those kids! Our father and his goons will come after you now and do the same thing!"_

_Hiro was right.The only reason that Ryouken brought his sons up there to the above-ground was to be guinea pigs for the Human Plus experiments the scientists were concocting. (Besides, who would really want to have a five-inch needle being drilled into the back of their head and have nanomachines take over the rest of their life? _(**2**)_Family never came first for Ryouken, work did._

_"...All right." Kazuma said with a nod. "That bastard won't lay a hand on me! I promise!"_

_Hiro smiled again. "...Just remember to be strong..." he murmured as he began to close his eyes and leaned forward, his entire body going limp..._

_Kazuma quickly caught his brother as he took one last breath..._

_BANG! BANG! BANG!_

The loud sound of knocking interrupted Kaze's flashback, but it was much louder than a person's knock and it wasn't coming from the door... more like the wall with the window.

After setting the picture on top of the empty dresser, he walked over and looked out the window...

...to find the head of a silver and turquoise AC looking back at him...

...before screaming in terror...

**To be continued...**

Some footnotes...

**1.** Here's a longer and uncut version of Kaze's story from chapter 11. I would go back and add the rest in, but I'm lazy...

**2.** Not you, I hope... XP


	24. Guest

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 24: Guest

_Never a dull morning, is it? _Kaze asked himself as he frantically tied his shoes and slipped the half-gloves on, all the while running down the hallway.

"Good God, Kaze," was the greeting that Chief gave as Kaze entered the meeting room. "you look like you just saw a ghost!"

"Does an AC count?" the pilot asked back, now running towards Mecha.

"How close was it?" the TALON leader asked with concern.

Before Kaze could stop and answer, three more loud knocks came from the western wall, rattling some of the excess AC parts hanging along the wall. Then deafening static and high-pitched whistles began to sing over the intercom...

"...E-excuse me." an unfamiliar voice called as the static cleared. "I-is there anyone in there?"

"There is." Chief replied calmly. "State your name, who you work for and your purpose for being here."

"M-my name is Goki." the nervous pilot replied. Kaze's ears perked up at the pilot's name. "I'm from the 18th AC Team and I've seemed to have strayed from my teammates..."

Chief fell silent for a moment. "From the way you announced that, I'd guess this is your first mission, correct?"

"...Um, yes, sir. It is..."

"Well, then, come on in! We're a friendly bunch! No worries here!"

"'A _friendly _bunch,' Chief?" Pyro asked. He, like the other pilots standing behind him were awakened from their peaceful slumber by the unpleasant whistling from the intercoms that were placed in each room.

"Nothin' to worry about here, huh?" Lazy-Eye added as she rolled up one of her sleeves.

"Chief?" Tsubasa called while glaring at the annoyed pilots.

"Go ahead." Chief replied with a wave of his hand as he ran up to the control bridge.

Quietly, Tsubasa walked in-between Pyro and Lazy-Eye and restrained them by pinching hard on one of their ears.

"What the hell are ya doin'?" the southern-accented pilot whined, attempting to free her ear.

"I am sorry, Lazy-Eye." the cold pilot replied. "But you and Pyro will not be rude to our guest."

"Okay, okay..." Pyro whimpered, hiding back tears of pain. "We're sorry for the outburst. Can you let us go now?"

"...No."

"Please?" Lazy-Eye asked. "It feels like your pullin' my ear off!"

"Mercy? Uncle?" Pyro asked again before Tsubasa pinched down harder on his ear.

"How many times must I tell you..." Tsubasa stated, letting go of both ears. "I show no mercy and I am not your uncle."

"Terribly sorry 'bout our actions..." Lazy-Eye muttered as she and Pyro rubbed their sore ear.

"...You are both forgiven." the monotone pilot said as he walked away.

"We can't do that again..." Pyro mumbled to Lazy. "He'll go for pressure points next."

"...I'll keep that in mind." Lazy replied.

The massive front door swung out towards the grassy plains, welcoming the visiting AC.

The silver and turquoise bi-pedal shyly walked into the warehouse-like base, stopping in the middle of the wide landing pad at the edge of the base. It knelt down politely to the team, setting the machine gun down beside it, showing that it will not attempt anything stupid.

The cockpit hatch opened, revealing a young pilot about sixteen years young with light brown hair, dressed in a uniform similar to TALON's but with an emblem of a blue 18 stitched to the side of the left arm. He looked to the team standing before him, pointing out a familiar face with his eyes. "Kazuma?" he asked. "Is that you?"

"Goki Buri!" Kaze replied. "Did you and your AC really have to scare me to death? ...And don't call me by that name! It's Kaze now."

"...Sorry." replied Goki, while his mind stated, _That's what you get for pulling that prank back at the academy!_ "I forgot that you don't like that real name of yours."

"So, how did lose yourself from your teammates, kid?" Pyro asked.

Goki looked down. "I... I'm really not sure myself." he stated. "All I remember was me and my team being out in the forest, working on a mission for Chrome when my teammates beside me were getting shot down by someone. Couldn't tell who, though... It was really dark out when it attacked.

"I was ordered to retreat to clearer ground and wait for everyone to regroup there. I flew out in a blind shock, letting R.O.M. take me anywhere. When I finally realized that I was outside, I had traveled further than I expected, about ten kilometers further than suggested.

"So, I kept wandering around, attempting to contact anyone... allies, strangers, it didn't matter. I needed help. And that was when I found this base."

"Well, you came to the right place!" Rebel noted. "Sure, we may look tired and grumpy now, but give us five minutes and we'll be ready to take on anyone!"

"Make that ten minutes tops!" Chief called from the control bridge. "The radar just picked up lots of aerial units and MT's closing in on us! They must've been tailing the R.O.M. ever since he retreated!"

"What type of units are they, Chief?" Bug asked.

Chief checked the radar once more. "...Looks like Stingray and Shogun models."

"Stingray and Shogun?" Kaze asked curiously.

"Murakumo..." Tsubasa replied sternly.

Bug saluted to Chief before running to his AC: Mantis. "I got this one covered, sir."

"I'll back you up, Bug!" Hyper said as she ran towards AC-195.

Kaze looked up to Goki standing on the R.O.M.'s core and smiled. "I should really pay you back for that time you helped me out on that dual AC team test in the simulator." he stated before walking to Mecha.

Goki nodded as he slipped back inside the AC. "'Bout time!" he said jokingly.

_Yup..._ Kaze thought, starting up the AC. _It's never a dull morning here..._

**To be continued...**


	25. Avenger

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 25: Avenger

"Impressive work, Guardian." Ryouken complimented over Avenger's radio.

"...Thank you, Senior Ishikawa." Guardian replied as the AC retracted the gold laser blade, letting the unsuspecting R.O.M., with a gaping hole in its core, drop to its final resting place, knocking over a few small trees along the way. "However, one AC did managed to escape from me."

A black, heavily armored MT, with the Murakumo emblem painted proudly on its left shoulder, appeared from the dense forest, sauntering to the AC standing within the small clear patch of land. "We can go after that AC, if you want." the pilot of the Shogun suggested.

"...You have my permission." Guardian replied. "By any means, find and destroy that R.O.M. before it calls for reinforcements."

"Too late, sir." one of the Stingray pilots said. "Our recon has just found out that the R.O.M. traveled towards a large heat source north of here. They say that it has called for back-up, but none of these other units are R.O.M. models."

"How many of these other units are there?" Guardian asked.

"Three. Two mid-weight bipedals and a reverse-joint model."

Guardian hesitated on that thought, ignoring the calm hum of the running AC. "...All remaining Shogun and Stingray units, go and attack the four AC's. They should not pose a problem for anyone."

"Sir, that's four AC's we're talking about here!" another Stingray pilot blurted. "We're gonna die out there!"

The fiendish-looking AC glared to the sky as a Stingray hovered by. "Fear not." Guardian said calmly. "A line has already been drawn in my mind. When one AC crosses that line, I will tell you to retreat and head back to base. You should be safe and your MT possibly battle-scarred but functional nonetheless."

"What about you, sir?" another Shogun pilot asked.

"...Simple. I will take on the AC's personally."

Before a Stingray pilot could make his objection, Guardian added, "And for those that think four AC's are a challenge for me, it pales in comparison to the fifteen AC's I have faced in the past... And besides, I didn't take any hits from those five R.O.M.'s just a few minutes ago... These AC's should pose no problem for me." He paused for a moment. "Now, do not waste any more time and go after those AC's."

As soon as the order was given, Avenger's radio was crowded with the word "Roger."

...When the last Shogun trudged past the AC, another voice came over the radio.

"You know that they will die out there..." Sora muttered to Guardian.

The AC pilot nodded slightly. "True." he agreed. "But some will make it out safely."

"You are certain about that?"

Guardian looked to his radar, seeing four small red blips come into view. The AC knelt down in the heavy brush, somewhat blending in with the dark forest surrounding it. "...Only if everything goes well, sir." he said without emotion.

**To be continued...**


	26. Lessons

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 26: Lessons

A warm, cloudless day was blessed upon the AC's.

A gentle breeze caused the tall wild grass to sway to and fro, brushing along the four pairs of giant metal feet while songbirds sang of a peaceful tune off in the distance.

...It was almost as if Kaze could hear the enemy coming. In the comfort of the cockpit seat, the pilot of Mecha tensed up, guiding the machine gun, carried in the right hand, to the wall of trees not far in front of the four AC's, discerning the sound of the jet engines, either whistling softly in his ears or in the back of his mind.

_I promise you, brother. _his mind hissed while his grip on the control became tighter. _Murakumo won't even come near me this time!_

A minute passed...

The pilot loosened his grip and eased his back to the chair, letting out a sigh. "Hey, Goki." he called out.

"...What?" the nervous R.O.M. pilot replied.

"Sensei's words are coming back to haunt me..."

"Which rule is it? 'Rule number seventeen: never let you guard down for an instant! (**1**)The moment you start thinking about what you're going to do when you get back home... BOOM!'"

Kaze smiled while he shook his head, eyes still poised to the forest's edge. "No, no... But, that's a good impression of Sensei, right there."

Goki chuckled. "Y'think?"

"It was what she said on the first day of class. 'Rule number one: ...Relax, will ya?'"

"I remember that!" Goki stated, withholding his laughter. "Yeah... I'm gonna get an ear-full from Sensei when the Arena matches come up next week..."

"'Arena matches?'"

"You don't know?" Hyper asked. "It's one of the biggest events that comes around every year!"

"I do know. Our Sensei gave us a special lecture on that a few weeks before the opening ceremonies. She said that if she talked it over with the rest of the class, it would calm her nerves."

"And she was right about that, Kaze." Goki added. "She literally shot right up the rankings! Right to tenth place! ...She was going to go for ninth, but..."

"But, what?" asked Bug.

"She was beaten by the ninth-ranked pilot:" Kaze stated. "a long-time friendly rival to our Sensei and one of the other teachers at the academy."

"Oh, now I know who you're talking about!" Hyper said. "Bad Apple and her AC, Detention going up against Barracuda and Torpedo. That battle made front page on every form of media!"

Bug nodded in agreement. "It must've been more popular than when Nine-Ball faced-" He was interrupted as soon as Mantis took a hit: a small missile to its right arm-weapon, doing little damage.

"Bug, are you all right?" asked Hyper.

"I'm okay!" Bug quickly adjusted his glasses and pulled the trigger on both controls, sending out two bright plasma beams to the direction of the missile's origin.

The MT, a Shogun model, staggered out of the forest, head and chest armor ripped away and missing an arm. A faint scream, mixed in with static, could be heard through the four AC's radios as the MT exploded.

"Shit!" a Shogun pilot cursed. "They spotted us!"

"All units, engage the AC's!" another Shogun pilot ordered.

A wall of black armor appeared from the forest, marching towards the four targets. In the sky, glider-like jets, armed with chain guns flew past the AC's before turning around to make a pincer strike with their fellow MT's.

"You kids know what to do now?" Chief asked over the AC's radio.

"Look after everyone's butt until the mission's over?" Kaze asked.

"Right. And if your AP's in the red, feel free to retreat. I won't yell at ya."

The AC pilots nodded.

"Okay?" Chief said. "...Go!"

**To be continued...**

Footnotes...

**1. **Oh, the irony... XP

T.R.: You won't be able to see the designs for Detention and Torpedo until later. (If you read my plan for turning this into a trilogy in my profile, those two AC's may not come around until the second act.)


	27. Defense

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 27: Defense

Kaze aimed carefully to the sky, getting a lock on one of the Stingrays, and fired a barrage of bullets, severing one of the wings and causing it to spin out of control, crashing to the ground.

"Nice shooting!" Goki complimented as he warded off a Shogun with the laser blade before blowing the cockpit away with a salvo from the machine gun.

Three Stingrays took up position and, while in a dive, began to fire at Mantis. A few shots made their mark, but did little to harm it. As the planes flew by, Bug turned the AC for a counter attack, opening the small doors on the twin missile launchers, waiting for the lock.

Bug fired as soon as the lock box turned red, sending five missiles, in an arch-like formation towards the three pests. As the first missile hit the plane in the middle, two missiles grazed past the two other planes, putting a deep gash into their engines, and hit the plane in the middle, destroying it. Amidst the other Stingray pilots' shock, the last two missiles hit their respected targets, causing each plane to burst into a ball of fire and plummet to the earth.

Switching out weapons, Bug turned back to the forest and fired four rounds from the dual plasma cannons, accurately hitting four of the black MT's, taking out most of the cores.

AC-195 got down on one knee as the large laser cannon flipped over its right shoulder. It took aim at one of the Shoguns coming out of the forest and fired, reducing the MT to scrap. It turned and took aim at a group of the slow-moving MT's. With the energy gauge full, it fired again, obliterating the MT in the middle while the Shoguns next to it were hit by shrapnel.

The AC stood up from the grassy terrain, laser cannon retracting back, and pulled out the laser rifle, firing a round each into the remaining MT's core.

With arms folded, Guardian watched the battle through the small spaces between the trees in the comfort of Avenger's cockpit. "...Only a matter of time." he muttered to himself as he saw and heard the explosions of the MT's and planes. "...It is only a matter of time before one crosses the line." He closed his eyes and waited for that certain moment...

With the number of enemies wearing thin, the Shogun commander began to get worried over the outcome of the battle. "Guardian, when in the hell are you going to attack?" he asked. "We're getting killed out here!"

"...Patience." Avenger's pilot calmly replied. "Go out there and open fire on the black and red AC. He will attack in close range. That is when I will give the order... Now go."

Unhappy about the decision made, the pilot ordered the Shogun to trudge out of the forest and begin to fire rifle rounds at Mecha.

The black and red AC simply dodged the rounds as they came near, while returning the favor with a volley of machine gun bullets.

The bullets mostly chipped away at the armor, but severely damaged the cameras positioned in its head. The MT pilot cursed up a storm as he saw the image of snow on the monitors.

Knowing that he blinded the MT and planning on conserving his ammo, Kaze and Mecha boosted forward, drawing out the laser blade, and closed in on the helpless MT...

Guardian opened his blue eyes. "Retreat now!" he called to the remaining units.

Before Mecha could throw a slash at its foe, the MT boosted backwards, blindly guiding himself through the forest once more.

The other MT's and planes followed close behind until the plains were, once more, inhabited only by the AC's.

Kaze sighed, relieved that the stressful battle was over. "Nice job, everyone." he called to the rest of the team.

The team added their cheers and dances to the small victory: Mantis doing a back-flip, AC-195 shooting a few rounds in the air with the laser rifle, R.O.M. punching the air like a boxer.

"Oh, yeah!" Goki cheered. "We won! We blew those guys away! Whooo-"

A grayish blur with what appeared to be a yellow laser blade, flew past the R.O.M. The silver and turquoise AC froze in its place, unsure of what happened... until...

_BOOM!_

**To be continued...**


	28. Offense

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 28: Offense

The TALON pilots watched in horror as the R.O.M. exploded from a single blade gash, taking the unsuspecting Goki with...

The assailant, on the other hand, merely grinned at the brutal sight. The AC's metal head glancing at the kill over its shoulder.

With the yellow laser blade still drawn, the AC made another dash. This time, directing its attack at Mantis.

Bug turned to face the fast-moving mech, aiming the plasma cannons at what appeared to be its core, and fired.

The right cannon successfully fired, sending a comet-like beam flying along the empty plain... However, the left cannon was severed from Mantis' core before it was even fired, the frayed wires exposed, sparking wildly like firecrackers.

The agile AC gained some distance, turned a half-circle and flew past Mantis again, slicing off the right cannon. Bug screamed in shock, thinking of how he would end up like Goki...

"Bug, retreat _now!_" Chief called over the radio.

"Uh... right." Without hesitating any longer, Mantis made one giant hop and flew back to the Nomad.

...All the while, Hyper was doing her best to ward off the metoric mech from making her the next victim, firing round after round from AC-195's laser rifle.

The metallic blur dodged every beam before drawing its blade and in a flash of light... hacking off part of the rifle, the left forearm and its head.

"Hyper, are you all right?" Chief called.

"Y-yeah..." she replied. "A little shocked, but fine..."

"Okay, you better get back to base... Kaze, you too."

Kaze didn't respond... Bound by fear and grief, he drew out Mecha's laser blade...

...And blocked the oncoming blade attack. The two AC's held their position, hoping to fend off their opponent's equally-strong blade.

The begining of the battle was a sight to behold. Both of the AC's had the same part assembly, the exact same weapons... on top of that, the same paint job. The emblems, however, were the only thing different about them: one had the symbol for "wind" painted in white, the other had the Murakumo logo...

Kaze was surprised to see an identical Mecha, but he had ask a burning question. He had to know something about the pilot he was going to face...

"...H-Hiro...?" he asked as a tear fell from his scarred eye. "Brother, i-is that you...?"

**To be continued...**


	29. Copycat

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 29: Copycat

With blades locked, the pilot of the identical Mecha rose a quizzical eyebrow to the saddened voice. "Who is this 'Hiro' that you speak of?" the pilot asked in a familiar voice. "My name is Guardian. I am a member of Murakumo Millennium's H.P. Team. _They_ are my family, not a low-life rebel like yourself..."

Avenger snuck the small plasma cannon up over its shoulder, aiming carefully at Mecha's head.

Taking notice, Kaze slipped out of the blade fight, before an energy beam was fired, gaining some distance. "I know it's you..." he hissed as he attempted to bombard Avenger with machine gun fire. "I know that voice from anywhere! Brother, it's me... Kazuma! Don't you remember?"

Out from the cloud of smoke and dust, kicked up by multiple rounds, that Avenger was encased in, a missile shot out and flew towards the retreating AC, hitting and damaging its left shoulder. Shredded wires, burnt gears and pistons could now be seen where the armor used to be.

Mecha skidded to a stop and turned to the dust cloud. It knelt down and brought out its plasma cannon, the mechanical arm struggling to raise higher than a few meters, aimed and waited...

"You must be mistaking me for someone else." Guardian stated. Avenger bursted out of the cloud, charging towards the kneeling AC with boosters at full throttle. "I know no one by that name."

Kaze fired at the incoming machine, throwing plasma beams rapidly, managing to get a hit on its head, core, right shoulder and leg... However, it hardly looked like it took any damage, nor did it slow down by the barrage.

Turning its undamaged shoulder to its opponent, the hovering Avenger slammed into Mecha, putting a good sized dent into the core, sending it flying and skidding along ten meters of land. Ten meters closer to home. The earth trembled as the AC fell in defeat.

"Kaze, get the hell outta there!" Chief's voice came over Mecha's radio, heard by semi-conscious ears.

"C-Chief...?" the pilot weakly replied as he struggled to stay awake. His head throbbing in pain.

"Kaze, hang in there, 'kay? Someone's coming to get you!"

Kaze could not reply but sighed as he fell unconscious from the blow...

"Kaze? _Kaze!_" Chief cried as the faint sound of the vertical catapult shot an AC up from the Nomad.

It was then that the oblivious pilot heard a strange noise echoing through his ears. A noise that could best be described as whistling, like that of a dentist's drill. He heard that noise a few times before but could not comprehend on what it truly was...

His eyes opened, now in the same blue color as Tsubasa's, looking to Avenger through the cracked monitor.

"Move," Guardian said, pointing the machine gun at Mecha's core. "and you shall die."

Kaze quickly took hold of the left control and Mecha's damaged left arm shot up from its earthly rest, taking a hold of the machine gun barrel, crushing it shut.

Avenger attempted to fire but the gun erupted into pieces from the pressure built up inside.

Kaze slammed on the right pedal, the boosters blazed brightly as the AC sat up, driving its right elbow into Avenger's eye.

The Mecha look-alike staggered back from the blow. "I see now..." Guardian muttered, glaring at AC through the static. "You are not a mere weakling. Your true powers had just not awakened yet..."

Kaze breathed calmly, staring down his opponent with his cold blue eyes, listening intently to the hypnotic whistle in his head.

Avenger drew the laser blade and made another charge towards Mecha. "Surrender and join Murakumo, Kazuma!" Guardian called. "Your father would be pleased to see that you were not a failed test subject!"

Kaze's eyes widened, his hands gripped tighter on the controls. Mecha drew out its laser blade but made a slash to the air, shooting out a energy blade-wave, slicing the stampeding Avenger's head off, halting its advance. It then pulled out its machine gun and unleashed a salvo of bullets, denting, chipping and scratching away at the opponent's armor to the point of submission.

"Impressive..." Guardian commented. "Very well, I admit my defeat... But, I will return for a re-match." Avenger turned and took off towards the forest, the black smoke lazily trailing behind it. "One day, I will make you see that Murakumo is the place that you truly belong..."

Mecha bravely stood still as the copycat fled from the battle... its pilot falling unconscious once more...

**To be continued...**

T.R.: Okay... so I'm planning on finishing off this part of the story in the next chapter, then I'll go and introduce the next story (no title yet...).

As always, reviews are _greatly_ appreciated:)


	30. Memory

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Chapter 30: Memory

"Guardian," a voice called from Avenger's radio. "what happened out there?"

"...He was stronger than you previously predicted, Sora." the pilot replied, wandering through screens of static and snow. "I was not able to sanction nor capture him... However, I did managed to kill the last R.O.M."

Silence filled the radio before Sora spoke up.

"I see... In any case, you did very well out there. Return to base and rest up. Next week, we will take the world by surprise."

"Thank you." Guardian replied. "Please also tell Senior Ishikawa that his son's true self was lying dormant and is now awake..."

"It is about time. When the lab secretly examined him through the AC simulation battles that were held at the academy, they yielded with nothing to prove the fact that the nanomachines were working. I wonder why the little buggers started operating now, rather than two years back..."

"Your guess is as good as mine..."

"I suppose you are right..." The radio clicked, signaling the end of the conversation.

Avenger stopped, standing before a clearing in the forest. Amidst the spotted afternoon sun and the fearless songbirds.

_Kazuma. _Guardian thought. _It is very familiar... I know I have heard of that name before... but where exactly?_

**_--Later…--_**

Kaze awoke back in the comfort of the hard bed. His green eyes slowly scanned the area he was in. The headache had disappeared along with strange feeling of being possessed by an invisible force.

_My bedroom? _he thought. _But, how did I get here?_

"I see that you are finally awake." a cold voice noted.

Kaze sat up and looked to the voice, sitting in a chair next to the bed, reading a book.

"The first question that you will ask me is about how you got here." Tsubasa continued. "The second would be if I know the one that pilots the identical Mecha. And the third would be about the condition of Mecha. Need I go on?"

"Are you a mind reader?" Kaze asked.

"No. Those are the most common questions asked by pilots that fall unconscious during or after a battle."

"And your answers...?"

"Seeing that you were unable to pilot Mecha, I carried you back to base in the hands of Silent Blade. You were asleep for almost a day. As for the pilot you fought against, I do not recall anyone that pilots a carbon copy of your AC. That was a first."

"And Mecha?"

"It sustained moderate damage. It is really nothing that Chief and Rebel cannot fix. It should be ready in time for arena matches, so there is no worry."

"Okay..." Kaze nodded slightly as the room went silent.

"...I had to tell them." Tsubasa stated.

"Tell who what?" asked Kaze.

"On the way back, Chief asked me about what the pilot meant when he said that you were a failed test subject."

Kaze could hardly remember what happened beyond Mecha's fall... He felt half-awake afterwards when his body unconsciously retaliated against the opponent, as though he was becoming...

"I told the rest of the team about the Human Plus project," Tsubasa continued. "and how we were forced into becoming those that the average human population frowns upon. Thankfully, they will still accept us as their comrades through thick and thin..."

Kaze sighed silently, staring at the other end of his room. "I think... I know what it feels like now... to not have emotions..."

The blue eyes turned away from the book, its glare now aimed at Kaze. "Go on."

"I remember when I fell from the AC's charge, I passed out. But a few seconds later, I heard this strange high-pitched noise in my mind... like it was beckoning me to wake up. All the while, I began to feel less like myself... and more like you. My soul left my body, but my heart was still beating. The next thing I knew, my eyes were open and I had no control over my body... it was fighting for me."

Tsubasa pondered over Kaze's statement for a moment. "...Such is the work of the nanomachines..." he noted. "When the pilot feels threatened, they will take over, controlling the mind and body, negating all but one emotion: the joy of killing... Thus, making the pilot a heartless being, bent on destroying every and all targets given to them.

"In the beginning, the effect is short-term, lasting a hour or so. However, it eventually escalates to long-term, lasting for years... Apparently, I was not the lucky one..."

"Losing the right to have feelings..." Kaze added. "Being controlled like a puppet... The thought sickens me..."

Tsubasa nodded in agreement. "Take my advice, Kaze... Remember and hold onto every emotion that you have, because you will not have them soon..."

"I'll do my best..."

The intercom rang in a soothing tone followed by a computerized voice. "The time is now twelve-thirty-seven a.m. Now arriving in Kinzoku City: home of the world-famous Kinzoku AC Arena."

"...It is late." Tsubasa noted, getting up from the chair. "I should leave and let you rest..."

"'Night, Tsubasa." Kaze replied.

The cold ally silently nodded back, turned and left the room.

Kaze laid back on the bed, staring at the ceiling, when an image of Goki popped into his mind. _...Goki. _he thought with a frown. _You're not gonna be the one that's gonna get yelled at..._

_"Rule number five: stand by and protect those that you care about," _a familiar voice noted, to which Kaze cringed at._ "because sometimes they're all that you have..."_

_No, Goki... I'm the one Sensei gonna yell at..._

**End of Part I...**

T.R.: Whoo! Good run! Now I'll get onto the second part and all of the AC battling! Please review, and I'll see you in the next story!


	31. Bonus: AC Designs and More

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Armored Core series. That belongs to Agetec and From Software. I only own the original characters. Thank you.**

**In TALON's Grasp**

by: T.R. Fanatic

Bonus: AC Designs and More

T.R.: This is not part of the story, but if you read this first before the whole story, you _might_ be spoiled.

So... because I pretty much suck at describing the AC's for you, I've created this assembly list for the AC's seen so far in this story (it will be updated every time a new AC is introduced)...

Oh, and one more thing, all of these parts can be found in Master of the Arena. (You can try it on Armored Core and Project Phantasma, but you'll have to tweak some parts...)

**Test Model AC** (Introduced in Chapter 1): I won't go in depth. This is the default model AC that you get at the beginning of the game.

**Fortress **(Introduced in Chapter 3): Head: HD-H10; Core: XCH-01; Arms: AW-DC/2; Legs: LC-M0S4545; Back weapon(s): WX-S800/2; Generator: GBG-10000; FCS: TRYX-QUAD

Color: (_General_): (Base): Red: 36, Green: 16, Blue: 0; (Optional): Red: 16, Green: 16, Blue: 16; (Detail): Red: 15, Green: 15, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 12, Green: 12, Blue: 12.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Unknown, (Raven): Chief; Age: 45; Experience of Piloting (in years): 30?; Arena Rank: Unknown; Occupations: Commanding officer of The Aggressive Line Of Newcomers (TALON), Captain of the mobile base Nomad, AC mechanic.

**Mecha **(Introduced in Chapter 4): Head: HD-ONE; Core: XCL-01; Arms: AN-25; Legs: LN-1001B; Arm Weapons (R): WG-AR1000, (L): LS-3303; Back Weapons (R): WM-L201, (L): WC-01QL; Booster: B-P351; Generator: GBG-10000; FCS: TRYX-QUAD

Color: (_General_): (Base) Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Optional): Red: 16, Green: 16, Blue: 16; (Detail): Red: 32, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 12, Green: 12, Blue: 12.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Kazuma Ishikawa, (Raven): Kaze; Age: 19; Experience of Piloting (in years): 1.5 (about 1.45 in a simulation model AC); Arena Rank: Not Yet Determined; Occupations: Test Subject for Murakumo's Project H.P., Graduating student of Ravens' Academy for Mercenaries (RAM), Member of TALON.

**Dust Devil** (Introduced in Chapter 4): Head: HD-ONE; Core: XCA-00; Arms: AN-K1; Legs: LFH-X5X; Arm Weapons (R): WG-RF/P, (L): LS-200G; Back Weapon(s): XCS-9900; Booster: B-VR-33; Generator: GBG-10000; FCS: RATOR

Color: (_General_): (Base): Red: 32, Green: 24, Blue: 0; (Optional): Red: 10, Green: 10, Blue: 10; (Detail): Red: 25, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 12, Green: 12, Blue: 12.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Unknown, (Raven): Rebel; Age: 25; Experience of Piloting (in years): 5; Arena Rank: Unknown; Occupations: Member and AC Mechanic for TALON.

**Firestorm **(Introduced in Chapter 4): Head: HD-2002; Core: XXL-00; Arms: AN-3001; Legs: LNKS-1B46J; Arm Weapons (R): WG-FG99, (L): LS-3303; Back Weapons (R): WR-L24, (L): WC-GN230; Booster: B-P351; Generator: GRD-RX7; FCS: TRYX-QUAD

Color: (_Head_): (Base): Red: 28, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Optional): Red: 32, Green: 32, Blue: 0; (Detail): Red: 0, Green: 32, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 12, Green: 12, Blue: 12.

(_Core, Arms and Legs_): (Base): Red: 28, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Optional): Red: 32, Green: 32, Blue: 0; (Detail): Red: 39, Green: 18, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 12, Green: 12, Blue: 12.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Unknown, (Raven): Pyromaniac, "Pyro"; Age: 24; Experience of Piloting (in years): 4; Arena Rank: Unknown; Occupations: Member of TALON.

**Mantis **(Introduced in Chapter 4): Head: HD-06-RADAR; Core: XCL-01; Arms: AW-XC5500; Legs: LB-4401; Back Weapon(s): WX-S800-GF; Booster: B-VR-33; Generator: GRD-RX7; FCS: TRYX-QUAD

Color: (_General_): Leaf Pattern: Standard.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Unknown, (Raven): Bug; Age: 13; Experience of Piloting (in years): 2; Arena Rank: Unknown; Occupations: Member of TALON.

**AC-195** (Introduced in Chapter 5): Head: HD-01-SRVT; Core: XXL-D0; Arms: AN-25; Legs: LN-1001; Arm Weapons (R): WG-XC4, (L): LS-200G; Back Weapons (R): WC-IR24, (L): WC-01QL; Booster: B-T001; Generator: GRD-RX6; FCS: TRYX-QUAD

Color: (_Head_): (Base): Red: 45, Green: 45, Blue: 45; (Optional): Red: 0, Green: 27, Blue: 0; (Detail): Red: 25, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 32, Green: 32, Blue: 12.

(_Core_): (Base): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue:45; (Optional): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 45; (Detail): Red: 32, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 32, Green: 32, Blue: 0.

(_Arms_): (Base): Red: 45, Green: 45, Blue: 45; (Optional): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 45; (Detail): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 45; (Joint): Red: 18, Green: 18, Blue: 18.

(_Legs_): (Base): Red: 45, Green: 45, Blue: 45; (Optional): Red: 32, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Detail): Red: 45, Green:45, Blue: 45; (Joint): Red: 10, Green: 10, Blue: 10.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Unknown, (Raven): Hyper Fangirl; Age: 15; Experience of Piloting (in years): 3; Arena Rank: Unknown; Occupations: Member of TALON.

**Silent Blade **(Introduced in Chapter 5): Head: HD-GRY-NX; Core: XCL-01; Arms: AN-K1; Legs: LN-D-8000R; Arm Weapons (R): WG-1-KARASAWA, (L): LS-99-MOONLIGHT; Back Weapon (R): RZ-Fw2; Booster: B-PT000; Generator: GBG-10000; FCS: RATOR

Color: (_General_): (Base): Red: 32, Green: 32, Blue: 32; (Optional): Red: 12, Green: 12, Blue: 12; (Detail): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 18, Green: 18, Blue: 18.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Tsubasa Arashi, (Raven): Tsubasa; Age: 22; Experience of Piloting (in years): 5; Arena Rank: One of the top ten (excluding 7th and 1st); Occupations: Member of TALON, Former Test Subject to Murakumo's Project H.P.

**Knight **(Introduced in Chapter 9): Piloted by nameless members of REDEYE. Head: HD-REDEYE (eye-beam cannon not included); Core: XXL-D0; Arms: AN-D-7001; Legs: LN-D-8000R; Arm Weapons (R): WG-RFM118, (L): LS-3303; Back Weapon (R): WM-S60/6, (L): WC-XP4000; Booster: B-T001; Generator: GRD-X7; FCS: TRYX-QUAD

Color: (_Head_): (Base): Red: 32, Green: 32, Blue:38; (Optional): Red: 16, Green: 16, Blue: 15; (Detail): Red: 64, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 0.

(_Core, Arms and Legs_): (Base) Red: 32, Green: 32, Blue: 38; (Optional): Red: 16, Green: 16, Blue: 15; (Detail): Red: 18, Green:18, Blue: 18; (Joint): Red: 12, Green: 12, Blue: 12.

**Sinner **(Introduced in Chapter 9): Head: HD-REDEYE (eye-beam cannon not included); Core: XCL-01; Arms: AN-101; Legs: LN-1001B; Arm Weapons (R): WG-HG512, (L): LS-3303; Back Weapon (R): WC-LN350, (L): WM-L201; Booster: B-VR-33; Generator: GRD-RX6; FCS: TRYX-QUAD

Color: (_Head_): (Base): Red: 20, Green: 20, Blue: 0; (Optional): Red: 12, Green: 12, Blue: 12; (Detail): Red: 64, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 0.

(_Core, Arms and Legs_): (Base): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Optional): Red: 20, Green: 20, Blue: 20; (Detail): Red: 20, Green: 20, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 8, Green: 8, Blue: 8.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Unknown, (Raven): Lazy-Eye; Age: 30; Experience of Piloting (in years): 10; Arena Rank: 7th; Occupations: Member of TALON, Former Member of REDEYE.

**Nine-Ball **(AN: Thanks Magnus2501 for the info on this AC's laser blade and generator!) (Introduced in Chapter 9): Head: HD-X1487; Core: XCL-01; Arms: AN-K1; Legs: LN-1001B; Arm Weapons (R): WG-XP2000, (L): LS-99-MOONLIGHT; Back Weapon (R): WM-S40/2, (L): WC-GN230; Booster: B-VR-33; Generator: GBG-10000; FCS: RATOR

(AN: WARNING! This is an overweight model. You may be able to pilot this AC until you finish all of the missions in AC1 and upload that file onto the other two games.)

Color: (AN: I'm not sure on the color. This could be really close, or perfect... who knows.) (_General_): (Base): Red: 24, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Optional): Red: 6, Green: 6, Blue: 6; (Detail): Red: 24, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 6, Green: 6, Blue: 6.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Unknown, (Raven): Hustler One; Age: Unknown; Experience of Piloting (in years): Unknown; Arena Rank: 1st; Occupations: Unknown.

**Mobius **(Introduced in Chapter 13): Head: HD-D-9066; Core: XXA-S0; Arms: AN-K1; Legs: LN-2KZ-SP; Arm Weapons (R): WG-RF/E, (L): LS-3303; Back Weapon (R): WC-01QL, (L): WC-IR24; Booster: B-VR-33; Generator: GBG-10000; FCS: RATOR

Color: (_Head_): (Base): Red: 15, Green: 15, Blue: 28; (Optional): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Detail): Red: 28, Green: 13, Blue: 13; (Joint): Red: 20, Green: 20, Blue: 20.

(_Core, Arms and Legs_): (Base): Red: 15, Green: 15, Blue: 28; (Optional): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Detail): Red: 13, Green: 13, Blue: 13; (Joint): Red: 20, Green: 20, Blue: 20.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Sora Yamagata, (Raven): None; Age: 18; Experience of Piloting (in years): somewhere between 3-5 years; Arena Rank: Not Yet Determined; Occupations: Test Subject in Project H.P., Pilot for Project Mobius.

**Fire** (Introduced in Chapter 22): Head: HD-REDEYE; Core: XCH-01; Arms: ANKS-1A46J; Legs: LN-3001C; Arm Weapons (R): WG-FGI-00, (L): LS-3303; Back Weapon(s): WX-C/4; Booster: B-P351; Generator: GBG-10000; FCS: TRYX-QUAD

Color: (_General_): (Base): Red: 16, Green: 16, Blue: 16; (Optional): Red: 21, Green: 14, Blue: 7; (Detail): Red: 32, Green: 0, Blue: 0; (Joint): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 0.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Ji Goku, (Raven): Kazan; Age: 27; Experience of Piloting (in years): 13; Arena Rank: Unknown; Occupations: Executive for Murakumo Millennium, High-ranking officer for REDEYE.

**Ice** (Introduced in Chapter 22): Head: HD-REDEYE; Core: XCL-01; Arms: AN-25; Legs: LN-501; Arm Weapons (R): WG-XP2000, (L): LS-3303; Back Weapons (R): WC-01QL, (L): WC-01QL; Booster: B-PT000; Generator: GBG-10000; FCS: TRYX-QUAD

Color: (_General_): (Base): Red: 16, Green: 16, Blue: 16; (Optional): Red: 14, Green: 21, Blue: 21; (Detail): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 32; (Joint): Red: 0, Green: 0, Blue: 0.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Ten Goku, (Raven): Hyozan; Age: 25; Experience of Piloting (in years): 13; Arena Rank: Unknown; Occupations: Executive for Murakumo Millennium, High-ranking officer for REDEYE.

**R.O.M. (Run Of the Mill)** (Introduced in Chapter 24): Piloted by Goki Buri and other Nameless Members of the 18th AC Team. Head: HD-01-SRVT; Core: XCA-00; Arms: AN-101; Legs: LN-1001; Arm Weapons (R): WG-MGA1, (L): LS-200G; Back Weapons (R): RXA-77, (L): WM-S60/4; Booster: B-P350; Generator: GBG-RX5; FCS: COMDEX-G8

Color: (_General_): (Base): Red: 32, Green: 32, Blue: 32; (Optional): Red: 7, Green: 14, Blue: 21; (Detail): Red: 18, Green: 18, Blue: 18; (Joint): Red: 12, Green: 12, Blue: 12.

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Unknown, (Raven): Goki Buri; Age: 16; Experience of Piloting (in years): 1; Arena Rank: Not Yet Determined; Occupations: Graduating student of RAM, Member of the 18th AC Team (18th ACT).

**Avenger **(Introduced in Chapter 28): **See Mecha.**

_Pilot Profile_: Name (Real): Hiro Ishikawa, (Raven): Guardian; Age: 21?; Experience of Piloting (in years): Unknown; Arena Rank: Unknown; Occupations: Test Subject in Project H.P.

There you have it (for this part, at least)! Be sure you get a chance to review!


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